The Grapevine
by xxkoffeexx
Summary: In which an indirect confession erupts into a fullscale war. Never underestimate the power of gossip.
1. Part 1: Tomoka

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**The Grapevine**

_by xxkoffeexx_

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Dedication: To all those under-appreciated female characters in Prince of Tennis, this is in honor of you.

**Extra Special A/N**: Just so you know, this little tale focuses heavily on females (as you probably have an idea about from that little dedication thing up there). But I mean, really, really heavy. Like, the-world-revolves-around-them heavy.

I don't think anybody cares, but I got into a minor accident last, last Friday… involving a horse. Yeah. It hurts like bloody _crap_ but the good thing is, the idea for this story struck me _just before_ the whole horse-kicking-me-in-the-ankle thing. So as I've been stuck sitting in my room for hours upon hours on end, I had a lot of time to stare at the computer screen and write this heavily-female-centered story… and voila! "The Grapevine" is born.

Warning: It's not supposed to be dead serious or anything. I just want to shed some (a lot of) light on the females. You know, give a few in-depth looks and stuff. And I'm not very familiar with all the different tennis teams (Shitenhouji) or the characters I used (Yukimura Seiichi, Sakurai Masaya…) but I gave it my best shot. Remember, not serious.

Disclaimer: I do **not** own Prince of Tennis. This applies to every fanfic, every chapter, every _sentence_ that has anything to do with the show.

**Part 1: _Tomoka_ (.x.The Woes of Tomoka.x.Ryou's Long Hair.x.Ryou's Triumph.x.)**

* * *

It wasn't that she loved him. She'd never been in that kind of love before, so it wasn't like she knew either. All she knew was that every time he entered the room she was in, there would be a flip-flopping in her stomach and something in her chest would thump excitedly. It wasn't a pleasant experience and she'd rather do without all the pomp and circumstance, but in the end it all came down to one thing.

Tomoka had the hots for Kaidoh Kaoru.

She didn't know how or when she began thinking of him like that and she didn't care to know. She preferred not thinking too long about it for fear of actually finding out. All that mattered was that nobody knew about her secret crush—especially him. She refused to become a lovesick fool who would dream and blush and eventually sigh into oblivion. If she was going to have the hots for someone she was going to be practical, dignified and absolutely level-headed about it.

Yes. Of course, this wouldn't be required at all if she hadn't acquired the 'hots' for him in the first place, but she'd long since passed that stage of denial (she's a hard veteran now) and so she faced her current dilemma: Toning down the level of 'hots' she had for him.

She realized that at her age it was only too normal to get excited when near the opposite sex, especially when she liked that particular member of the opposite sex. But she didn't consider herself a hormone-driven teenager (hopefully) so she decided to control her natural instincts to jump him whenever he came within ten feet of her 'hots' radius. The problem was how to actually acquire that control.

Tomoka thought long and hard, hard and long, frowned, pulled her hair, banged her head against the pillow, cried, laughed hysterically… all she succeeded in doing was freaking her brothers out and worrying her parents. And she even got a good mind picture of Kaidoh-senpai shirtless—

She finally went to seek the council of those who were more veteran and wise on matters like this. In other words, she cried her heart out.

Moms were the best people to go to on lo—_like_ issues, she'd believed. After she'd poured out her woes on her mom's shoulder, her mother patted her hair, smiled, and told her to go after him. "Tomoka, dear, don't suppress your desires. Chase him. Run after him and grab him with all you have! Hold tight and don't let go until you're _satisfied_."

Tomoka wondered if this was how her parents married and felt a little sorry for her dad. She decided her mother was not the best person to go to in this kind of situation after all, and went on to the next female: Sakuno.

Sakuno did have some experience when it came to harboring feelings for the opposite gender. In fact, even after two years Tomoka wasn't sure if her friend had completely gotten over a certain hat-wearing tennis-loving boy who was visiting from America. Tomoka was confident that her best friend would be understanding and sympathetic.

These hopes were dashed when the first thing she asked was, "Um, Tomo-chan? Will you tell me who he is first?"

And the final blow came when Sakuno told her to suck it up and tell Kaidoh that she had the hots for him. In a nicer form, of course.

Tomoka reluctantly turned to number three.

Over the years she, Sakuno and Tachibana An had gotten closer through various, natural events, such as tennis and school. They were girls around the same age who watched tennis matches nearly everyday, so it was only expected that they would share the same ideals and opinions on, say, boys. By the time they graduated from middle school, and after many arguments, fights, reconciliations and finally acceptance, Tomoka was pretty sure that their bond rivaled that of the boys' tennis teams.

When Tomoka confessed her troubles An immediately asked who the guy was. And then _she_ told her to suck it up and tell Kaidoh that she had the hots for him. Word for word. Not only that, An offered to _accompany_ her if she needed moral support. Funny, since Sakuno offered the same thing.

It was then Tomoka realized she was screwed. If three of the closest and wisest females in her life told her straight out to confess, then she had no choice but to disown them and move out of the country to live as a hermit. Some wise counselors _they_ were.

But then she would be lonely, so she had to settle with not taking their words of advice.

* * *

Sitting on that park bench on a lovely Friday afternoon eating her mocha cone, she must've looked like a lonely, pining teenage girl with nothing to do. Heck, she felt like a lonely, lovesick teenage girl and she _had_ nothing to do. This was why she hated having a crush. She would mope and eat sweets and get fat, all because she was a lonely, pining teenage girl with _nothing else to do_. She viciously bit into the cold ice cream and nearly spit it back out, feeling the freeze go up to her brain.

"Hm? What's a cute girl like you sitting by yourself?"

If it was a guy's voice she would've ignored it. But seeing as it was a girl's voice—no, a _woman's_ voice—she merely looked up and felt her jaw drop.

The woman was beautiful. Probably a model. Slim body, great legs, wonderful clothes, stunning face, the elegantly-styled hair—she was a goddess. Here was a woman, Tomoka thought, who probably had no problem telling a guy she had the hots for him. She looked strangely familiar, but when she couldn't remember where she had seen her, Tomoka decided she was probably from some magazine.

Since Tomoka was too dazed to answer, the woman sat next to her and did the talking. "Someone as cute as you should be with a handsome guy, or at least hanging out with friends. What's the matter?"

It was that word again—_cute_. Tomoka slumped and muttered, "I have no friends." She wasn't serious of course, and the lady knew that.

"That's why you're sitting here by yourself, eating ice cream? In that case, should I hang out with you for the rest of the day?"

Tomoka blinked, but the goddess was smiling. The smile was so full of compassion and kindness, that, before she knew it, she blurted out everything. From her troubled love life, the advice from her friends, the way she felt like a heroine in a cheesy romance whenever she saw him… everything to this stranger.

The goddess didn't interrupt to ask who he was, nor did she say anything at all until Tomoka was finished. After a pause, she said slowly, "I think I know what can help."

Tomoka nearly cried with relief. "You do?" The woman nodded that familiar smile.

"The solution is simple. You want to tone down your hots for him, is that right?" A nod. "Then you need a way to leak it out. You've been holding in all your emotions for him and it built up until you think he can feel those waves of emotion. Just let it out. Confess indirectly."

"What?"

A cell phone rang and the lady started. "Oh, I completely forgot! I'm supposed to go to a sponsorship meeting for a new flower shop… I'm so sorry. I don't mean to just get up and leave you…"

Tomoka shook her head. "No, it's fine. Thank you so much for spending time with me. You've helped me out a lot." She grinned. "I feel better already."

The goddess petted her hair and practically glowed as she said, "You're so cute! Well, I have to go now. Remember, don't hold it all in! Confess to something besides him, like a rock or tree." She waved as she walked away. "Good luck!"

* * *

It wasn't until she was standing in the middle of the park facing a tree trunk and ready to pour out her heart that she knew why she hadn't thought of this before. It was too _silly_. What would she do if a person walked by and saw her talking to a tree? It would be worse if she _knew_ the person.

But she had no other choice if she wanted to find her peace again. With this thought in mind, she closed her eyes and began to talk.

"Um, hello, Kaidoh-senpai."

She giggled. Then she stopped and with great effort forced herself to get serious.

"I know this is stupid, but I really need to get this off my chest. I…" Opened her eyes and glanced around. Nobody. "I really like you. Not love, but just like. It's so crazy because I don't know _why_. But yeah, I like you." She stared at the bark expectantly. It only stared back. "I like you, Kaidoh-senpai." Hearing it come out of her mouth felt funny, but it got easier. "I like you, Kaidoh-senpai. I really, really like you, Kaidoh-senpai." She took a deep breath and then smiled. "Hehe."

She stepped back and then suddenly shot her arms up to the sky, giddy with relief and happiness. "Ahh… I'm so happy." She felt as light as a feather, as if a ton of weight lifted from her soul.

Then she whirled around just in case by some twist of fate the object of her affections was standing right behind her. To her great relief, there was no one. Of course, it wasn't like this was some kind of drama or romance story where, after the heroine confesses out loud, the guy of her dreams is standing right behind her, listening to every word she said. This was _life_. And so, just to prove that, she wrapped her arms around the tree and kissed it soundly.

A faint noise that sounded suspiciously like a person made her freeze. She listened and heard nothing, but she still stepped back from the tree. Warily, she craned her neck over the bushes and saw a white shoe. It was connected to a dark pair of slacks. She considered screaming and hightailing, but the stopped when she realized it might not be a dead body. Bracing herself, she leaned over the bushes and saw a boy. He didn't look dead, so she stepped over the bushes and got a good look at him. Relief flooded her when she saw that he was sound asleep.

Questions flitted through her mind, like, who was he? Why was he sleeping here of all places? And did he hear her? He was wearing a school uniform, but she couldn't quite recognize it. She saw the duffel bag that he was half-laying on and figured he must like sleeping in the park. In that case, she didn't know if she should wake him or leave him be. She bent down so she was eye level with him. His sleeping face was cute, she decided. Yet there was something familiar about him…

There was a rustling sound and she spun around, only to see nothing. Realizing that the sky was dark, she spared a glance at him before going on her way. In any case, this was a public park, and if he was a student, he should know what he was doing.

Soon, a smile spread on her face and she good barely contain her delight. Her steps had a new energy in them, a new kind of bounce.

_I love life. _

* * *

Life was funny, Akutagawa Jirou thought as he stretched from the tree. After tennis practice he'd somehow found this park and decided to sleep. The next thing he knew, there was the sound of laughter. Wondering if he was still at school as he heard a girl's voice, he tried to fall back asleep.

"I really, really like you, Kaidoh-senpai."

His eyes opened. Where had he heard that name before?

"Ahh… I'm so happy."

This was definitely not Hyotei. And he didn't recognize this girl's voice. Clearly the girl didn't know he was here, or she wouldn't have blurted out her feelings so carelessly. Briefly entertaining the thought of alerting her of his presence, he decided to just stay silent and wait for her to leave.

That is, until he saw a pair of arms wrap around the tree he was leaning against and heard the unmistakable sound of a kiss.

He stifled a laugh but the girl still heard it. Immediately he feigned sleep, knowing ultimately the easiest way out. He heard rustling as she came through the bushes and then awkward silence when she stared at him. He wondered if she was going to kiss him too. Finally, she went on her way, apparently deciding to leave him alone.

Making sure she was well away, he poked his head around the tree and saw a young girl wearing the Seigaku High School uniform. It was too dark to see anymore, but he was pretty sure she wore pigtails. He frowned as he tried to remember which girl in Seigaku wore pigtails, but none immediately came to mind. Well, she had seen his face, so she could recognize him anywhere. As for him, tracking her down would be a breeze, what with him having Atobe as a captain.

_And_ he knew her secret. Life was funny that way.

But even funnier was that he remembered who Kaidoh was.

* * *

Tachibana An was normally a level-headed and capable girl. Not much fazed her, unless it was about people she cared about, and even then she liked to think she was calm and rational.

But what she just saw blew every rational thought out of her mind.

She had been walking home from a late tennis practice and decided to take a shortcut. As she walked through the park, something caught her eye and she turned in time to see Tomoka bending down to give some guy a kiss. If she hadn't met and comforted a desperate Tomoka only a few days ago, she would have thought the girl had moved on. But she _had_ met her a few days ago, and she knew that there was no way Tomoka could've moved on so quickly.

But that didn't change the fact that Tomoka was about to give a kiss to a guy who was definitely not Kaidoh.

A gut feeling told her that something was not quite right. Feeling slightly overwhelmed, she decided to call Sakuno.

* * *

"Horio-kun, could you get me some tape please?" A silence. "Horio-kun?"

Katsuo passed by Sakuno as he carried a box, saying, "Horio-kun is in the bathroom. Do you need masking tape?"

"Um, yes. It's all right, I'll get it." The pigtails girl crossed the classroom to Horio's work area. Suddenly, her phone rang, making her jump slightly, and she answered it with a surprised, "An-chan?"

_"Sakuno, I've got a class __A__ emergency." _

"Ryuzaki!" a voice called. "Can I have that tape after you?"

Flustered, Sakuno placed a hand over the receiver and told them, "Oh, um, you can have it now! I don't need it yet." To An she asked, "Emergency?"

_"Yeah, it'__s about Tomoka. By the way, where are you?"_

"Um, I'm at school." She went outside the class for some privacy, but there were students working outside as well. She jumped out of the way as two boys holding a heavy box hurtled down the hall. "W-wah! I'm sorry!"

_"Eh? __So late?"_

"Yes! We're having a festival soon and our class is preparing a food stand. So, um, what's the emergency about? Is Tomo-chan in trouble?" She entered the girl's bathroom, relieved that it was empty.

_"No. At least, I hope not. You may want to sit down for this…"_ An was only too aware of Sakuno's lack of balance and she wasn't sure how much the news would shock her.

"Okay, I'm sitting," Sakuno said bemused, sitting on the toilet cover.

_"Tomoka has a boyfriend." _

"E-EH?" Sakuno was glad she was sitting, or she really might have fallen. "Tomo-chan… has a boyfriend?"

_"Yup.__ And that's not all. I saw her kissing him."_

"T-Tomo… She was k-k-kissing him?" Poor Sakuno thought she would faint. She knew that her friend was outgoing and confident, but not _this_ confident. "But… An-chan, are you sure?"

_"I wish I'm not, but I really did see it. And even weirder was that he wasn't Kaidoh-san." _

Sakuno frowned. "But that doesn't really make sense… Did you see who it was?"

_"They were a little far away, but he had brown hair. Actually, it was more like orange." _

"Orange? He had orange hair?" She wondered who of all the people Tomoka knew had orange hair.

_"Yeah, but that's all I know. He might have been cute-looking, but I couldn't tell. In any case, Tomoka has something she's not telling us. You'd better get some answers from her." _

"O-Okay…" Sakuno didn't say that maybe it was best to let Tomoka say it when she was ready. "Ah, An-chan, are we still meeting tomorrow?"

_"Ahh!__ Sakuno, I almost forgot to tell you! I'm really, really sorry, but I just got a dentist appointment tomorrow. And then my brother asked me to do some errands…! I'm really sorry!"_

Sakuno smiled. "It's okay, An-chan. Maybe we can go some other time."

_"I know! Why don't we meet at the mall next Saturday? There's a new flower shop that I want to check out." _

"A flower shop in the mall? Oh! I heard Obaa-chan saying she wanted to buy some flowers from there for her friend's birthday. Okay, so next Saturday? At eleven, right?"

_"Yup!__ Sorry again, Sakuno. Ah! Why don't you go with Tomoka tomorrow? That way you can interrogate her thoroughly." _

"E-eh… okay." As usual, An was full-speed ahead, even if Sakuno thought she was overreacting.

But then, why shouldn't she be? Tomoka was kissing a boy only two days after she proclaimed her love for Kaidoh. There was something not Right. This was indeed a class A emergency.

"Okay, An-chan," Sakuno said suddenly. "You can count on me!"

_'Tomo-chan… don't worry, I'll help you. As your friend, I will not fail!' _

* * *

Horio unglued his ear from the bathroom wall. His eyes were wide and the gears in his head whirled with what he just heard.

He had been busy answering nature's call (still was, in fact) when his keen ears picked up a familiar girl's voice through the wall. It was Ryuzaki. This is what he heard:

"…boyfriend… kissing… orange hair... An-chan… flower shop… mall… next Saturday… eleven…"

Based on his superb deduction skills (which he'd picked up from a certain data man), Horio concluded two things. One, that Ryuzaki was just having a normal, harmless girl's chat/gossip. Or two, which he highly believed to be the truer, that An Tachibana was kissing her orange-haired boyfriend and had a date with him at the flower shop in the mall next Saturday at eleven in the morning.

Tachibana An was the younger sister of Tachibana-buchou of the Fudomine tennis team. Although rivals, they were on friendly terms with Seigaku, and if anything happened to one team, the other team would be sure to aide them.

Horio, backed by his intelligence and great logic, reasoned that the sister of a tennis captain would date no one other than a tennis player. So it was safe to conclude that Tachibana An was dating a tennis player with orange hair.

This was where the problem started. Neither Akira Kamio nor Momoshiro had orange hair. And he was pretty sure nobody else from Seigaku and Fudomine had orange hair. That only left… Horio's eyes widened.

Sengoku Kiyosumi. Yamabuki vice captain. That tall, amazing player clearly had orange hair, _and_ he was a reputed flirt. And if he remembered correctly, which he _knew_ he did, Sengoku-san had played against both Momoshiro and Kamio … and lost. Granted, he beat Momoshiro later, but it was possible that great tennis players counted any loss, regardless of the wins, as a loss.

Horio nodded thoughtfully. Yes, it all made sense now. Sengoku-san, feeling sore because he lost, decided to take revenge and steal the one thing Momoshiro and Kamio cherished most: Tachibana An's feelings.

Horio was elated. This was top secret information that nobody among the tennis players had except for himself. There was only one thing to do.

"I have to tell Momo-chan senpai."

* * *

Friday. Weekend. Home. Warmth.

If there was one thing Fuji Yuuta loved most about coming home, it was the delicious aroma that assaulted his craving senses the instant he stepped over the threshold.

_Food._

"I'm home!" he called, waiting for either his mother or sister's voice, or even his brother's, but he doubted he was home yet—

"Welcome home," greeted Syusuke as he poked his head from the kitchen. "You can take your time putting your stuff away, Yuuta. Dinner won't be ready for a while."

"What? Why? Are you making dinner?" The last part was said with some dismay, and Syusuke's head appeared again.

"Why, what's with that tone little brother? You don't doubt your Aniki's cooking skills, do you?"

Yuuta snorted as he entered the kitchen, seeing the arrayed dishes of food on the table. "Nee-san already made all of this. Speaking of Nee-san, where is she?"

The genius smiled as he stirred the pot. "Beats me. All she said on the phone was to not touch _anything_ until she came back." This was directed at Yuuta as he tried to sneak some food.

"When?" Maybe if he kept his brother busy answering questions he could get away with some meat.

"If I knew I would tell you," came the answer. "Anyways, tell me about your week. How has my little brother been? How's high school?"

"Aniki, I keep telling you to stop calling me 'little'!"

"You'll always be my little brother, Yuuta."

"Yeah, but I'm taller than you now, so technically you can't call me that."

"But I'm older, so technically I can."

"_Aniki_, you're—is something burning?"

They looked at the pot, which was indeed bubbling and smoking.

"Oops, I must have put the heat too high."

"Ack, Aniki! The smoke!"

"Yuuta! Open the windows!"

"Hurry and pour out the soup before Nee-san sees—"

"Before I see what, Yuuta?" Yumiko Fuji stood in the kitchen doorway, a cheerful smile on her face that belied the danger lurking beneath it.

Realizing their lives were at stake, Syusuke turned and gave his older sister a disarming smile. "Ah, Nee-san, you're back. Would you like some soup that Yuuta and I made for you?" Yuuta shot him a glare and backed away.

"Oh no, Aniki, you're not dragging me into this. This is _your_ fau—Nee-san!" Yumiko suddenly grabbed her brother's neck into a choking hug and gave him a resounding kiss on the cheek. "Gah! Nee-san, stop it!"

She released him, smiling widely. "Punishment, baby brother." Her smile turned on Syusuke, and he immediately knew what was going to happen… but then she burst into laughter. Her brothers stared as their older, mature sister uncharacteristically spun around sighing, "I think I should become a love counselor. What do you think?"

Realizing he could save himself, Syusuke quickly said, "You would make a great love counselor, Nee-san." Yuuta grumbled something like 'coward' as he rubbed his cheek.

Yumiko was in her own world now. "She was a cute girl from your school, Syusuke." She giggled. "It must be wonderful to be so young and full of love."

As she drifted off, completely forgetting about the burnt soup, Yuuta looked at his brother and hissed, "You're a suck up, Aniki. Nee-san could never become a love counselor and you know that."

Syusuke only smiled and said, "Those who run can live to fight another day. And you have lipstick on your face, little brother."

"Ack!" Yuuta hurried away to the bathroom. "Stop calling me that!"

"Little!"

Home. Warmth. Food. Family. Laughter. Love.

This was why he came home every weekend without fail.

* * *

Momoshiro Takeshi probably had dual-personality disorder, Ryoma decided. That explained how the friendliest person in the world could suddenly engage in the world's biggest, longest, _stupidest_ arguments.

"Oh yeah? I bet you couldn't get a girl to go out with you even if she felt sorry."

"What would you know? A girl wouldn't even look at you, let alone talk to you for five minutes!"

"Too bad a girl already has, you punk! That's more than you can claim!"

"What did you say?!"

Ryoma resisted the urge to tug on his old cap, the common phrase ready on his lips. He and Momoshiro had agreed to play at the street courts and had arrived early, only to find the courts occupied by none other than Fudomine High. Apparently, their captain and manager told them to practice before enjoying their Saturday, and they had arrived extra early to take all the courts.

This would have been totally fine with Ryoma since there were plenty of other courts. But as they were leaving, Akira Kamio, who had woken late, collided with Momoshiro, making him drop his racket. The resulting argument the instant they saw each other soon erupted into a heated spat. It somehow became a fight over who attracted the most attention from the females.

Stupid, Ryoma knew.

The rest of the team glanced curiously over at the arguing pair, the loud voices carrying over easily to the far courts. The battle about who was better-looking provided more entertainment for the sleep-deprived players than half-heartedly hitting the ball back and forth, but respect and fear for their captain's orders held them back.

"They're quite noisy." Ibu Shinji had no such restraints as he appeared by Ryoma's side. The boy didn't answer, hoping the loquacious senpai would get the hint. This hope was dashed as Shinji paused and then said, "It makes my head hurt. They're too loud for so early in the morning. They should make use of their energy and practice instead of arguing over such a pointless matter. If I were them, I would settle it over who wins a game. A battle of words can expand your knowledge, I'll admit, but how do you know who the winner is if they don't stop talking? It's unreliable. It's stupid. Their stupidity is making my head hurt. Why don't they just agree to a match and decide the winner fair and square? I want to tell them, but for some reason, I doubt they'll take my advice. What do you think, Echizen? Do you agree that their stupidity is making them blind to the solution in front of their eyes?"

"Excuse me, I need to go to the bathroom," Ryoma said, realizing he could escape now while he still retained his sanity. Shinji didn't seem to hear him as he continued talking.

"They say that ignorance is bliss. I don't agree with that statement at all. By being aware of all the consequences of your action you become a wiser, better person than before. Those who fall can learn from their mistakes and stand back up again. I know that I have fallen many times, but I have not let that stop me." He didn't seem to notice that the arguing pair whom he was trying to lecture was not listening, and in fact, they had gotten louder. Unconsciously, he raised his own voice as well. "Echizen, the greatness of a person is not determined by words but by their action. That is why tennis is so important. In tennis there is not so much talking as there is action. By doing things physically it proves that you are a real man. I personally think…"

Ishida was nearest to them and remarked to his double's partner, "Oi, isn't Shinji just contradicting himself?"

Masaya shrugged, returning a backhand. "I don't think he cares."

Momoshiro was seconds away from throttling Kamio. "Ha! You have a girl who's practically on your team yet she chooses to spend time with me! It doesn't say much for your charm."

Kamio's visible eye twitched violently as he retorted, "She just feels sorry for you, seeing you play here all alone! We see each other at school everyday so she doesn't need to spend pity time with me!"

"Oh yeah? Then why does she ignore you when I'm around? I think you're misunderstanding something, Mr. I've-Got-_Rhythm_."

"You're the one who's misunderstanding, you monkey! You're just jealous because An-chan and I are closer than you'll ever be!"

They were practically frothing at the mouth, grabbing each other's collars.

"She's just forced to be nice to you because you're on the team and your captain is her brother! I feel sorry for her. She has to see your ugly face everyday!"

"I pity you for your stupid brain. You don't seem to realize that An-chan and I have known each other far longer than you have. Actually, I pity her because she has to put up with your stupidity!"

"Why you little bast—"

"Momo-chan senpai!" They turned to see Horio running towards them, a frantic look on his face. "Momo—" He stopped at the sight of the two senpais ready to pummel the lights out of each other.

Behind him, Kachiro and Katsuo were panting. "Wait, Horio-kun! Don't tell him yet!"

Horio was panting as well, but he still managed to say in his loud voice, "What do you mean? Of course I have to tell him now! We've been searching for you everywhere, Momo-chan senpai!"

"No we haven't!"

Momoshiro managed to blink in his anger. "Huh? Why?"

"Oh, it's just you guys," said Ryoma as he returned from his (long) bathroom break. He had been wondering why it had suddenly gotten so noisy.

From the courts, the rest of the team had watched as the group around Kamio and Momoshiro grew. By now it was obvious they weren't getting much practice done.

Ishida put his racket on his shoulder and said, "You guys keep practicing. I'm done for today." As he walked away, Masaya followed him. Kyousuke and Tatsunori glanced at each other, shrugged and joined the group. They decided that facing the possible wrath of their captain might be worth watching the show.

Horio was feeling important now that everyone was paying attention to him. Not only that, but Fudomine was here as well. Ah, the looks of surprise and awe on their faces when he told them. "Ah, ahem. You can listen to this too, Echizen. This is a very grave matter of importance that has to do with the one and only Tachibana An."

Both Kamio and Momoshiro blinked. "Eh?"

Kachiro and Katsuo could practically see disaster ready to strike. "Horio-kun…" They looked at each other and sighed. "I guess we can't really stop him."

Suddenly Horio felt the atmosphere grow tense, and when he stopped preening to see why, he cringed. Kamio and Momoshiro were looming dangerously close to him, their auras so high that he felt like they were going to pull a special tennis move on him. He began to wonder if maybe he should have kept his mouth shut.

But it was too late. "So? What about An-chan?" Kamio barked. Horio flinched.

For once Momoshiro was in agreement, demanding, "Out with it, Horio. What about Tachibana-imotou?"

Sweating profusely, the freshman squeezed his eyes and blurted, "I'm sorry, but I overheard this from Ryuzaki! She was talking to Tachibana-san over the phone and I heard… I heard… that she's dating Sengoku-san and that they're going to meet next Saturday at the mall at eleven! That's all!" He braced himself, close to whimpering, but when nothing happened he slowly opened one eye.

Momoshiro had a blank look on his face. "Dating… Sengoku-san…" He said incredulously, "Tachibana-imotou?"

"An-chan? She has a boyfriend?" Kamio had an expression of shock that slowly turned into disappointment, but then quickly turned to outrage. "_Sengoku_?"

"Sengoku-san?" Masaya was confused. He glanced at Ishida. "Lucky Sengoku? But why would An-san date a player from Yamabuki?"

Momoshiro was grinding his teeth as he said, "He must have tricked her into becoming one of his girlfriends! That bastard… I thought he was a good guy, but now I'm going to crush him!"

Kamio's eye twitched as he clenched his fists. "That damn player! If he even touches her I'm going to kill him!" He suddenly rounded on Horio, who was trying to slink away. "You!"

Horio nearly peed his pants. "Y-yes!"

"Did you say they were meeting next Saturday? Where?"

"Y-Yes! They're meeting at the mall in front of the flower shop!"

"Wait." Momoshiro fixed an eye on the quivering kouhai. "Are you sure this is absolutely true?"

Horio could hardly keep himself from whimpering as he answered, "Y-yes, Momoshiro-senpai! I didn't hear his name, but she said that she kissed an orange-haired guy…" His eyes widened in horror. Kachiro and Katsuo groaned, knowing they were now officially dead meat.

"RAAGH!" Kamio had to be restrained before he went and did something rash—like kill Sengoku. "An-chan! How could you k—k—! GAHH!"

Similarly, the freshmen (excluding Ryoma, who wisely stayed a distance away) had to hold down Momoshiro before he could go on a similar hunt. "I thought he was decent! That bastard! I'll tear him apart if he makes her cry!"

"Momo-chan senpai, stop it! Please calm down!"

Ryoma watched the two thrashing second-years out of the corner of his eye before he took a sip of his Ponta. "Hm. Mada mada dane." He quickly turned around, but when he saw nothing, he shrugged. The sound was probably just his imagination.

Kyousuke glanced at Shinji nervously. "Hey, Shinji?" The normally talkative boy was silent and staring at the ground quite intensely. "Uh, I know you're mad and you probably want to do something, but we're upset too. An-san is like our little sister. So, uh, don't get too angry." Ishida placed a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head.

"It's no use when he gets like that, man."

Shinji blinked and then looked up at Momoshiro and Kamio. "Stop it, you two."

Everyone looked at him with surprise. He continued, "Getting angry won't accomplish anything."

Kamio was still seeing red and retorted, "Then what should we do? Attack Yamabuki?" His tone was not sarcastic, indicating that the idea was not lost on him. "Why are you so calm, Shinji?"

"I have a plan." At the blank expressions he explained, "While you guys were acting on your emotions, I was thinking. The plan is simple."

Momoshiro forced himself to calm down and asked, "Oh? And what is it?"

Shinji smiled slowly. Everyone felt chills go down their spines.

"We sabotage their date."

* * *

"Inui? Is that you?"

The data tennis player turned and saw Eiji blinking at him. "Eiji, good morning. What brings you here?"

"Huh? I was just buying some toothpaste that was on sale." He eyed Inui's ever-present notebook that was open and said in surprise, "Inui, are you taking data this early in the morning?"

Inui was undeterred by his incredulous tone. "The early bird gets the worm first."

The bubbly half of the Golden Pair wrinkled his nose at this analogy. "Nya, I guess I can understand that. What are you taking data on?" Inui adjusted his glasses and smirked.

"Extremely interesting data, Eiji. Something that will spark more than just rivalry between schools."

* * *

"Come on, I want to try out that store first!" Tomoka pointed and walked quickly to it, leaving behind Sakuno. "I feel like changing my style."

The braided pigtail girl kept from sighing and caught up with her energetic friend. "Tomo-chan, you already changed your style five times in the past three months. Why don't we go get something to eat before hitting the clothes?" And possibly get her to talk about her new boyfriend, Sakuno thought.

"But if we eat we can't fit into any of the clothes, Sakuno!" Tomoka stopped abruptly and said, "Unless you're hungry. I don't really mind either way."

Sakuno was speechless for only a second at her friend's uncharacteristic behavior. "Um, yes, I'm a little hungry. I forgot to eat breakfast…" This was actually true because she'd woken up late. She'd gotten home after working hard in preparation for the festival and barely managed to set a date with Tomoka before she fell asleep. She smiled brightly and said, "Let's have pizza then."

Tomoka's eyes lightened at the mention of something Italian. "Yeah! Let's go to that one restaurant on that one floor! Come on, Sakuno, I suddenly got _really_ hungry!" Sakuno barely had time to agree when she was pulled by her friend. "Pizza, oh pizza, I'm coming for you!"

Sakuno smiled. Good. Now if she could get her friend to let her guard down over a few slices, then her mission would be a breeze. A certain buchou's words that would have warned her friend against such an act made her giggle silently.

Sweet fragrance filled her nose as a different kind of breeze brushed past her, bringing her attention to a small, well-decorated shop with an array of brightly colored flowers. Feathery chimes hung at the entrance and made silvery tinkling music as the wind gently blew at them. Through the glass she could see silk, embroidered pillows and adorable plushy dolls holding flower bouquets for display. The shop had such a calm and peaceful atmosphere that Sakuno couldn't help but sigh.

Suddenly, she saw a girl stand up. The girl was a little older than her, definitely in high school, and pleasant-looking. Judging from the apron she was a worker. Sakuno kept watching, wondering if the girl was a florist. Why did An want to meet at this shop?

And then, a familiar bandana-wearing tennis player appeared by the girl's side, holding a beautiful bouquet of roses. The shock that went through Sakuno was not pleasant, and she realized that Tomoka was not supposed to see this. No matter if she had a mysterious boyfriend. She glanced at her friend and was about to ask what kind of pizza she wanted, but Tomoka's attention was elsewhere. To her dismay, she was looking in the direction of the flower shop.

"Ah, Tomo-chan, we're almost at the pizza place!" Sakuno tried to grab her attention, but it was too late. It was impossible to not see Kaidoh handing the bouquet (and what an amazing bouquet it was!) to the girl. The blush on his cheeks was even easier to see. It was obvious what this gesture meant to him. Sakuno berated herself for staring at them so stupidly and tried to think of something to say.

Tomoka seemed riveted to the spot, her eyes betraying the shock and confusion that her blank face hid. Sakuno winced and slipped her arm through her friend's, firmly tugging her to move. "Come on, Tomoka."

An must have mistaken what she saw for another couple, because clearly, Osakada Tomoka very much still liked Kaidoh Kaoru.

* * *

It was a beautiful late afternoon with the sky clear of any clouds and the sun shining brightly. The sounds of children laughing and couples chatting and dogs barking filled the busy city. The streets were crowded with students and tourists and the air had the scent of different kinds of food that sold in vendors or restaurants.

It was the perfect kind of day to go out somewhere. Maybe a picnic. Or the festival the town was holding. Or hang out. Whatever. For Shishido, he preferred to play tennis, but doing all the aforementioned things was cool by him. Just as long as he did not have to be dragged along in a group outing—or, as _he_ called it, "team bonding under the magnificent tutelage that is Ore-sama!"—and be forced to endure the swarms of fan girls crying "Atobe-sama!" and "I love you!" and "Please look at me!"… he wouldn't really _care_.

"Look, it's the tennis team!"

"Kyaah! It's Atobe-sama!"

_"Atobe-sama_!"

Unfortunately for him, the esteemed tennis captain of Hyotei decided that, in order to strengthen the bonds that would ultimately defeat his greatest rival the entire team should accompany him to the small festival that the city council decided to hold over the weekend. He had ordered everyone to come, and when Shishido absolutely refused to step into the typically grand limo, there had been a not-so-veiled threat of fan girls being allowed to come to every practice and get a "closer look at the great and awe-inspiring Captain." With a threat like that who could blame him for going?

"Isn't that the captain of the Hyotei tennis team?"

"Wow, they're so cool!"

"_ATOBE-SAMA_!"

"Why?" he muttered quietly, so that nobody could hear. Beside him, Choutarou heard the single-worded complaint anyways.

"Don't worry, Shishido-san, it won't be much longer before we can go home." The tall boy was actually enjoying the festival, but he didn't say that to his irate doubles partner.

Behind them Gakuto scoffed. "So dumb. Do you think he'll go anytime soon with all these fans?" Near the back of the group, Hiyoshi grunted in agreement.

Oshitari Yuushi nodded. "Not only that, but I think he actually likes it here."

Shishido fought the urge to pull his hair, not because it would look uncool, but because he had already accepted the fact that it was useless to act emotional when it came to Atobe's whims. It only proved to result in a big headache later on.

"Hm?" observed Yuushi. "There seems to be a commotion." Indeed, there was a large crowd gathered near one of the game booths, and it seemed very interesting judging from the excited voices. He pushed up his glasses, remarking, "It sounds like a game."

"Eh?" Gakuto craned his neck, trying to see over the heads and said mockingly, "What could be more interesting than buchou?"

Hiyoshi rolled his eyes as he said, "I can name a few."

"Apparently those girls can't," Yuushi said, nodding at the squealing crowd of girls surrounding Atobe and the ever-present Kabaji.

Choutarou frowned, wanting to support his captain, and protested, "Senpai, they just admire buchou. A lot," he hastily added at their looks. Shishido had to roll his eyes at his friend's naivety.

Gakuto snorted, "If forming a freaky cult is what you call admiration, fine. If you ask me it's just a bunch of slutty girls who want to be his official harem."

"Gakuto-senpai!" Choutarou looked horrified. But then, loud cheering kept him from continuing as everyone turned to look at the crowd from before. It had become larger while they weren't looking.

"I admit, I'd like to see what kind of game it is," Yuushi mused.

"Billiards." They turned and saw Jirou yawning from his position on the bench where he'd been dozing. "I heard from some guys. There's someone challenging people to a time-limited game—ten seconds per move, or something." He yawned again.

Billiards, Shishido thought, perking up just a tiny bit. He hadn't played in a very long time, what with high school and tennis taking up his spare hours.

Choutarou looked at him. "Shishido-san, you like to play pool, don't you?"

Shrugging, he said, "It's probably just some amateur player who rigged up the game."

Gakuto's eyes were glinting maliciously. "Oh? Are you scared that your skills aren't good enough to beat a rigged game?"

Choutarou knew what his senpai was doing and he tried to interfere, but Shishido was already stalking towards the game. "Shishido-san!" He sighed. "Gakuto-senpai, now he won't leave until _he's_ done."

Yuushi adjusted his glasses again, saying, "This might be interesting." He headed toward the crowd as well, and Gakuto jauntily followed. Hiyoshi had a disapproving face but curiosity won over and he too left. Choutarou was alone with the half-sleeping senpai.

Sighing, he soon followed. "I guess I should go too." It was a resigned tone of voice that knew he had to do whatever damage control he could.

Jirou slept peacefully, curled up on the bench and a content look on his face.

* * *

It wasn't as if she were in love with him. She thought she'd already gone through that. But what was that feeling in her chest when she saw him smiling so gently at that girl? Why did she still feel the flip-flopping in her stomach, the thumping in her chest, the awareness that he was _right there_ and she was looking straight at him? She shouldn't be feeling any of these, not when she'd gone through the trouble of toning down her emotions. That indirect confession worked, didn't it?

No, it worked. It just wasn't enough. She nodded to herself, gripping the pole tighter as the bus swayed around a corner. The next time she would have to pour out every single drop of her soul. _Catharsis_.

If there was a next time.

_...His girlfriend is pretty. _

She clenched her hand tighter around the pole and tried hard not to feel the hot prickling at the back of her eyelids. Tomoka was a strong girl. She was not a highly sensitive, overly emotional teenager. She was Osakada Tomoka, freshman (freshwoman) at Seigaku High. These petty feelings were only a passing crush. She didn't love him or anything, so it was okay.

Really though, she thought back, she had to give Sakuno some credit. The normally gentle girl had suddenly taken command and dragged Tomoka around the entire mall—anywhere, as long as it was away from that flower shop. She'd forced the suddenly comatose girl to eat pizza and then pulled her into store after store after store. Sakuno had even bought a cute little necklace with a delicate chain and a friendship ring—only a small token of their camaraderie.

Tomoka reached a hand to touch the necklace and blinked when something brushed her skin. Her hair was down and out of the hair ties that restrained them. Again, it was Sakuno's idea—something about "let your beautiful hair be free just this once." She'd done it just to appease her friend, but she really wasn't used to having her hair brush against her face and shoulders. So she gathered her hair back up into a ponytail.

"Ow!" Something pulled at the scalp of her head and she realized it was her necklace. Some hair had gotten caught on the clasp and wasn't about to let go. She tried to untangle it, but since it was at the back of her neck it was difficult. Somehow, it got tangled even worse, and she huffed. "Jeez." Her day just had to get worse, didn't it?

There was no help for it. She looked around the bus, hoping to find someone who could help her. Sakuno had gone home with her grandmother since they had a special dinner with some guests, and Tomoka said she would go home by herself despite their urging to give her a ride. She wanted to be alone and mope.

A fat lot of good that did her now.

Luckily, there was a tall girl with long dark hair wearing a white hat standing near the doors. Gathering herself, Tomoka went and tapped her shoulder, and then turned around quickly before her blush could be seen. "Excuse me, but can you untangle this for me? I can't really see it, so…" She lifted as much hair as she could from her neck, hoping nobody was watching them.

* * *

Coming all the way here by bus took longer than Kisarazu Ryou had expected, but at least he had the equipment he needed for the next gig. He and his newly formed band were performing for a festival that his school was holding next week, and he needed new strings for his electric guitar. As he stared out the window, watching the cars pass by, he suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder.

When he turned, he didn't expect to see a slender neck and a hand holding up long tresses from said neck. And so close too. He felt a blush suffuse in his face and he blinked when the girl asked him to untangle something for her. Multiple thoughts ran through his head, one of the main ones wondering if the girl had any idea how bold she was to approach a stranger in such a manner.

Then he realized she was still there waiting for him and he mechanically reached for the knot of hair tangled in the necklace. It was a rather complex snare that took all of his concentration to untangle, and he had to be careful not to hurt her on accident. He tried not to notice when his fingertips brushed her skin, or just the unnerving proximity she was to him.

Finally, he finished, and he brushed away the loose hair that couldn't be saved from her shirt. She turned with a bright smile, saying, "Thank you, Onee-san—" She froze and her eyes widened in shock.

He felt his own eyes widen in horror as his face burned.

He'd been mistaken as a girl.

* * *

"Jirou, wake up!"

Even in the deepest slumber he could recognize the imperious voice, and knowing that the voice wouldn't stop until it was obeyed, he opened his eyes and saw Atobe standing in front of the bench with Kabaji silently by his side. It was getting late, he realized as he yawned and sat up. The others were missing. He remembered something about a pool game and an interesting challenge.

"Where is everyone?" Atobe was more curious to know why everybody was not waiting eagerly for his golden attention. "They are quite rude not to wait for Ore-sama. Right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

Jirou leaned back drowsily, saying, "They said they were going to play billiards. Over there." He pointed. If possible, Atobe's scowl turned haughtier. His sharp eyes observed the large crowd and indeed he could see familiar light hair standing above the rest of the heads. It bothered him slightly because not only was the crowd paying attention to something besides him, but they actually seemed like they were having fun.

"I will let my presence be known to them, because it is obvious that they have no idea that Ore-sama is here. Come with me, Kabaji, Jirou."

"Ossu."

The sleepy boy didn't really feel like accompanying the captain to make his presence known, so he said the first thing that came to his mind, "Atobe, do you know any pigtail girls in Seigaku?"

"Hm?" Atobe turned slightly to give Jirou a slightly surprised look. Then he caught himself and smirked. "Ore-sama is known by many girls in Seigaku. But why would _you_ ask such a question?" He didn't have to add that out of all the boys in Hyotei, Jirou was the last person to ask after a girl so specifically.

Despite his appearance, the Sleeping Beauty of Hyotei was quite cunning and observant. He shrugged, saying, "A really beautiful girl with pigtails ran into me the other day. She was wearing the Seigaku High uniform. But I didn't get a chance to ask her name." He opened an eye. Good, Atobe was looking at him. It was probably at the word 'beautiful.' He continued, "Since you of all people are acquainted with beautiful women, I thought I should ask you who the name of the goddess was." _'Nice one, Jirou.' _

Atobe, for all his acquaintances and superb memory, did not remember such a girl. But like the person he was, he refused to be overcome by such a small obstacle and he closed his eyes. A flash of long, braided pigtails flitted through his mind's eye and he smirked radiantly.

"Ore-sama knows your goddess' name. She is the granddaughter of Ore-sama's greatest rival's coach… The goddess you have fallen in love with is Ryuzaki Sakuno!" He flipped his hair elegantly and waited for the shouts and ebullition of admiration to follow his amazing memory. Belying his confident attitude, his mind was thinking swiftly.

Ryuzaki Sakuno was present at almost every single one of that brat's matches. She and her very loud friend were always cheering Echizen on, even when Atobe was obviously on the court. Ryuzaki was clearly not swooning in awe at the sight of his prowess, and in his egotistical mind, that only meant one thing.

Ryuzaki Sakuno was Echizen Ryoma's girlfriend.

So deep within his own thoughts that he almost didn't hear Jirou comment with a yawn, "No, Sakuno-chan is in love with Kaidoh Kaoru."

Atobe was surprised, but he quickly recovered and demanded, "That is ridiculous. Ryuzaki Sakuno is Echizen's little girlfriend. And why do you call her with such familiarity, eh? Ore-sama thinks you are trying to commit adulterous acts." Ignoring the nonplussed look he received, Atobe added irritably, "And do not spout lies either. Ore-sama is well-aware of what kind of person Kaidoh Kaoru is—no, animal. That boy is, without doubt, a snake. No innocent doe would fall in love with a predator!"

Jirou didn't say that Atobe was crazy because one, the captain wouldn't have believed him, and two, it was already a given to everyone who was used to Atobe that he was eccentric. So he settled with shrugging, "I heard her say that she loved him, straight from her mouth. There's no mistaking it—the doe _can_ fall in love with a snake."

A regal scoff, but Atobe was thinking hard. If Ryuzaki Sakuno was not in love with the brat anymore, and she confessed her love to the snake, then there was sure to be a conflict. Echizen was, as much as Atobe hated to admit, a very strong player and even had Tezuka's eye on him. Atobe had no doubt that when Echizen found out his girlfriend loved another, his inexperienced heart would not be able to take the pain and his tennis would ultimately be affected. And if one member was down, the whole team was down.

_'The only person worthy of being called my greatest rival is Tezuka. And if his team is not up to its full potential, then it would not be worth defeating him so effortlessly.'_

Atobe smirked at his amazing conclusion and said, "Ore-sama is not satisfied with defeating Tezuka in such an unmerited manner. Ore-sama will conquer Tezuka when he is at his best. Right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"Ore-sama has decided to honor Tezuka with a visit after the weekend and warn him of the circumstances involving his two players. Then he will be awed by the sight of Ore-sama's generosity and mercy. Right, Kabaji?"

If Kabaji had no idea what Atobe just said, he was careful not to show it. "Ossu."

Jirou floundered, having lost the captain around the first minute of his speech. "Huh?" He yawned, and then said with some relief, "Oh, they're back."

Shishido came stalking first, his hands shoved in pockets and his face looking like he could kill someone. The thunderous cloud above his head seemed to get worse as Gakuto hovered beside him, taunting and snickering.

"Hah! You lost! You sucker, you lost to a _girl_!" The acrobatics player had been forced to watch the longest game of billiards in his life and rubbing the loss into his teammate was an outlet for his pent up boredom. Fortunately Choutarou was there to admonish the senpai and mollify his doubles partner, even if he too looked like he could laugh.

"It wasn't that bad, Shishido-san. Wasn't it a good game, Oshitari-senpai?"

Yuushi pushed up his glasses as he commented to Hiyoshi, "Now that was entertainment I wouldn't have missed for all of Atobe's greatness." The normally stern boy smirked in agreement.

Atobe raised an eyebrow, only somewhat annoyed that they weren't paying him any attention. "I see you all have enjoyed yourselves."

Choutarou smiled brightly, "Yes buchou." The only response he got was a sniff. The tall boy glanced at Shishido, whose aura seemed to grow even darker as Gakuto continued laughing and Yuushi and Hiyoshi made amused comments.

Atobe was slightly curious. "What is so amusing?"

But the acrobatic player was doubled up, clutching his stomach as he continued to snicker. Choutarou was starting to look upset and said, "Gakuto-senpai, it isn't that funny. Shishido-san played well considering he hasn't played in a long time, and that girl was probably a professional. Or she might have rigged the game, like you said."

Since Gakuto couldn't speak, Yuushi explained for him. "You may be right, but what _was_ funny was his attitude."

"He was totally serious!" Gakuto burst out, wiping his eyes. "He was cocker than a rooster! Pahaha!" Then he suddenly stopped and said in a voice that perfectly imitated a certain pool-loser, " 'How lame. I'll beat you and your rigged game!'" Another fresh peal of laughter. Choutarou glanced from his senpai to Shishido, who was emitting a sort of killing intent.

"Gakuto-senpai! Stop it!" Choutarou gave his doubles partner a terrified look and swallowed. "Shishido… san? Um, you aren't that angry, are you? Shishido—" A hand on his shoulder stopped him, and Yuushi shook his head.

"You'd best step back before he loses it." Jirou was sneaking away, the smell of the food appetizing him more than the promise of a violent show. Hiyoshi was already following his senpai with the knowledge that sometimes even strong fighters like him had to back out. Gakuto would survive, somehow, as he always did, and this time he kind of deserved whatever Shishido dished out.

Even the great captain of Hyotei High knew when to preserve his life, and so he remarked to Kabaji, "Ore-sama saw a decent-looking food cart a while ago. Ore-sama will bless the plebeians by purchasing their handmade products and spread the benevolence that only Ore-sama can give."

"Ossu."

They wasted no time in going to that plebeian's food cart.

Gakuto finally stopped laughing and took a moment to catch his breath. He blinked. "Huh? Where did everybody go? Oh, hey Shishido." He cracked a grin, apparently not sensing the death aura around his teammate or he would've run for his life. "Or should I call you, sucker of pool that lost to a _girl_?"

Shishido Ryou finally found. After all those hours of waiting, enduring, suffering, and ultimately, losing (to a girl), he finally found something worth putting up with so much crap.

Gakuto's two shiners.

**End Part 1**

* * *

**A/N**: Just one thing... in this particular fic, I spell their names An and Syuusuke. Since I've already written it out it's too late to change them. Eh, sorry if it bothers you.

Thank you so much for reading!

* * *


	2. Part 2: An

* * *

**Part 2: _An_ (.x.****To the Rescue.x.****Tomo's**** Fight Part 1.x.****Love Your Siblings)**

* * *

If there was one good thing about coming back to school on Monday, it was the festival. Because the school was preparing for the event all week, the students got to go home early everyday. Tomoka was chosen to be the clean up crew, because she had fought with Horio for the welcoming party position. She'd thought it was stupid, but now she felt more than grateful to be free of work until then. The weekend had made her exhausted and numb and all she wanted to do was go home, pull the covers over her head and sleep.

Surprisingly, Sakuno wouldn't let her. The girl had placed a hand over Tomoka's forehead, asked if she was hungry, and then concluded in a worried tone, "Tomo-chan, you're not acting like yourself."

Sakuno was completely right, and Tomoka almost hated her for it if she did not love her best friend so much. The spunky and loud girl had become quieter, withdrawn, and unbearably clumsy. It did not help that certain images of a blushing boy handing over flowers kept distracting her.

"Tomo-chan," said her friend suddenly. "You need to do something."

"Like what?" Tomoka asked listlessly.

The young Ryuzaki frowned and thought hard, and then brightened, exclaiming, "Self defense!" She smiled as her friend blinked stupidly. "What you need to do is work off your stress and learn how to defend yourself, Tomo-chan!"

"That's okay. I'm fine." Tomoka grabbed her bag and stood up. "Thanks, Sakuno, but I think I just—" A small hand grabbed her arm with a deceivingly strong grip. _Three and a half years of tennis_, Tomoka thought. She turned to her friend, opening her mouth to spew out some fake assurances, but stopped.

It was the dreaded Puppy Face.

Whether Sakuno meant to or not, when she put on her begging expression, no man or woman on Earth could withstand it. Tomoka was not excluded and she could already feel her iron-will waver. _Don't let your guard down!_ she mentally shrieked, but her heart that cared so much for her (normally) shy friend didn't stand a chance.

"Okay," she relented.

Sakuno beamed.

And that was how she was on the bus, holding a crumpled paper of directions in one hand and the metal pole in the other. She wasn't as resigned as she thought she would be, because of something she had seen on her way out of the school. Taking out her cell phone, she called Sakuno.

_"Hello?"_

"Hey Sakuno, have you seen Atobe yet?"

There was some rustling and voices on the other end, and Tomoka wondered guiltily if she was disturbing her friend. _"Eh? __Atobe__-san?__ Um, no, I haven't…" _Sakuno trailed off and then continued in a higher note, "_I heard that he was here, but I didn't really believe it until you just told me. Did you see him, __Tomo-chan_

Tomoka nodded, gripping the pole as the bus turned. "I saw him on my way out. He was with that silent giant." Surrounded by all his fan girls, she almost unnecessarily added. "Why in the world would he be at Seigaku?"

She could practically see Sakuno bite her lip as her tone turned uncertain. "_Well, I overheard from __Horio__-kun that __Atobe__-san needed to discuss something very important with __Tezuka-buchou__. Of course, I'm not totally sure what it's about, but from the sounds of it, the matter has something to do with the tennis teams. __And… um, maybe a pillar?_"

Tomoka had to raise an eyebrow. "Huh? What are you talking about, Sakuno?"

"_Ah, never mind_." Sakuno's voice was apologetic, and Tomoka immediately regretted being pushy.

"No, it's okay. I'm sure you're right. Perhaps Hyotei and Seigaku will form a new bond of alliance and become close friends instead of rivals?" She seriously doubted this though, and she could almost hear it in Sakuno's hopeful tone.

"_Yeah, you're probably righ__t. Oh! Are you almost at the place yet?"_

"Uh, not yet." Tomoka looked down at the crumpled directions and blinked. "Oh, I'm almost there. Okay then, Sakuno, thanks for your time. Good luck on the festival work!"

When the bus came to a stop, she got off and looked up at the buildings. Sakuno's directions were more like a scavenger hunt than an address, but surprisingly they were very accurate. The clumsy girl admitted she had signed up for jujitsu classes a few years ago, under her obaachan's hope that she might gain some balance, coordination, and possibly some self-defense. From the girl's guilty expression Tomoka guessed that the classes were a complete failure in those aspects.

Finally, she stopped in front of an old, rundown brick building with a large poster pasted in the door window. 'Special Free Two-hour Classes Now!' and 'Drop in for a Free one-on-one lesson!' _Good timing_, Tomoka thought as she opened the door.

A bell rang, just as soon as the stench of sweat, body odor and old equipment attacked her nose, making her stumble. "Hello. Are you here for the free lesson or do you want to register for a class?" A tough, middle-age man was sitting on a desk, holding a clipboard and a pen. Behind him was a worn, life-size poster of a sweaty, well-built young boxer. She blinked, and at the sounds coming from the half-open door, slowly went to see what was going on.

It was a huge room full of people boxing. If possible, the smell was worse, and the air was stuffy. Tomoka gasped and held a sleeve up to her sensitive nose, staring wide-eyed at the all-male occupied area. There were several boxing arenas where students of all ages were either practicing or having a match. Most of them were shirtless, much to her consternation.

"You do boxing?" The same gruff voice asked, and she turned to see the man standing behind her, looking at the room.

Tomoka opened her mouth, realizing how rude she must have been, "Ah! No, I don't." Why did Sakuno send her here of all places? She thought she was taking jujitsu classes, but this place obviously wasn't anything remotely like a dojo. Then she remembered her dear friend's lack of directional sense and realized Sakuno must have gotten the directions wrong. She refrained from sighing and said, "I'm sorry, I have no idea how to box. I've never boxed in my whole life—"

He had a skeptical expression on his face and he cut in, "Then why don't you learn now? We _are_ offering a free two-hour lesson today." He glanced at his watch. "In fact, if you want, you can start in five minutes. An assistant should be free by then." Without waiting for an answer, he went into the room and called, "Oi, Kenta, are you done?"

Tomoka swallowed as she backed out of the room. She honestly didn't want to go in there with all those sweaty, half-naked guys, but it looked like she had no choice. The problem was that she was wearing her school uniform, and she doubted that they had any spare clothes for her. Perhaps that could be her legitimate excuse?

"Hey, one of them is free now," the man said, coming back through the door. He looked straight at her. "You can ask him for some extra clothes. You don't mind wearing a guy's, do you?"

She could only shake her head, realizing there was no choice but to go through with it now that someone was waiting to teach her. Swallowing again, she approached the door, saying, "Um, my name is Osakada Tomoka." He only nodded and led the way. It was as if she was in some kind of show. She could feel almost everyone's eyes on her as she followed him, and she could only stare at the ground, clutching her school bag. Honestly, what was she thinking, letting Sakuno coerce her into coming here? Well, it wasn't technically Sakuno's fault, but still—

"Here you are, Kiyosumi. She's a beginner, so start from the basics. And get her a change of clothes, will you?" The man gave her an encouraging nod and ambled away, leaving her to stare at a pair of worn tennis shoes. Wait, tennis?

"Eh? A girl wants to learn how to box? Hehe, and I get to teach her too. Lucky!"

She looked up in surprise, realizing why the name was so familiar. She hadn't seen Sengoku Kiyosumi since the Junior Invitational Camp, and that was a couple years ago. The orange-haired tennis vice captain was a little taller and more broad-shouldered than before, but he still had the same happy-go-lucky smile as he did back then. The familiarity put her a little at ease, and she wondered if he recognized her. She decided it was better if he didn't, especially considering their awkward situation.

She bowed politely, taking a leaf out of Sakuno's book. "Yes. I really don't know anything about boxing, Sengoku-san. So…" A large hand on her shoulder startled her, nearly making her knees buckle.

He was grinning. "Don't worry! I'll teach you everything! Ahaha!" Blinking, she pulled back, looking at him suspiciously. He noticed her look and hastily explained, "Well, not everything, since that would be impossible. Er, you don't really look like the athletic type, so I'm not sure how quickly you'll learn…"

She clutched her bag tighter. He thought she wasn't athletic because she was a girl! An old spark lit within her and she lifted her eyes at him. "Sengoku-san, where's the extra clothes? I'd like to get changed."

He blinked at the new glint in her eyes and wondered if maybe he said something wrong. "Ah, right this way." As he led her to the storage room he glanced at her from the corner of his eye, trying to remember where he'd seen her before. The brown pigtails, Seigaku uniform, cute face, mole under the right eye… Then, realizing he was staring, he shook his head and said, "Here it is."

* * *

Ryoma was glad he wasn't one of the students helping with the festival. The classrooms looked like a windstorm blew by what with all the different colors of paper, cardboard boxes lying randomly on the floor, and the scattered desks. The students were hustling back and forth from class to class, rushing down the hall and brushing past him as if they were in a class A emergency. Going all the way to the main building bathroom had been a hassle, he thought, but it was infinitely better than going down to the courts and possibly running into a certain pompous Hyotei captain.

Judging it was safe to go to the lockers now, he wondered why the haughty king came all the way here just to speak with his "greatest rival". Was it that important a matter that he could not talk about it over the phone like a normal person?

Then again, most of what Atobe did was hardly considered normal, so it almost made sense, his strange method of talking.

As Ryoma walked toward a corner, his senses told him to stop. A very familiar voice reached his sharp ears and he realized Atobe and his captain were just around the corner. Very relieved that he caught himself, the hat-wearing boy was about to turn and circle around the building when he heard his name come out of his captain's mouth.

"... have to do with Echizen?"

"...has great impact on his playing. Do you… that if but one player is weak then the whole team becomes weak? Anh?"

The wind blew, carrying the voices away, and Ryoma crept closer. Why did Atobe come all the way to Seigaku to talk about _him_? Why was he talking behind his back?

"...anything to do with Ryuzaki Sakuno."

"...course! Do not lie to Ore-sama and say you haven't noticed… affections for her?"

The young tennis star stiffened in surprise. The buchou had affections… for Wobbly Hips? And how did Atobe know all this?

"...knows all. It will be a battle between…" The wind was blowing their voices away again, and Ryoma strained to hear. "…between you and Ore-sama."

"...affect matches? I don't understand what… "

"Tezuka, Ore-sama is… it will be a tennis match for her heart!"

A tennis match for wobbly hips' heart? Between Buchou and Atobe? Ryoma felt more shocked than he'd ever been, even more than during the Nationals. Had the world gone insane?

And finally, when the wind died down, Tezuka said the first thing that made sense:

"Atobe, did you come all this way just to tell me this?"

* * *

Inui was forbidden to come anywhere near Tezuka and the Hyotei captain. Tezuka ordered it, Atobe's aura reeked of it, Oishi practically begged him not to, Fuji didn't say anything, but his smile warned him not to pry any further. Outnumbered, Inui had no choice but to do as they said. Of course, he was wondering rather darkly the next concoction of Inui Juice he could feed them.

Eiji took a slight break from running and glanced at the corner where both captains disappeared to. "Nya, I wonder what they're talking about? And why's Atobe here? Doesn't he have school, nya?"

Inui was scribbling in his notebook, determined not to let his prohibition to gather any data from the captains' conversation stop him from theorizing. "He should have school, but the consequences of skipping are most likely not as severe as it would be for us. The reason why he drove all the way here, and without Kabaji, who is with him 99 percent of the time, leads me to believe—" he snapped his notebook closed. "That it is a highly important matter and has something to do with both Hyotei and Seigaku."

"Uh, Inui-senpai, we already knew that," Momoshiro said, swinging a backhand hard at Kaidoh, who was across the court. The 'mamushi' hissed at his rival's insolence, but privately agreed. Why else would the captain of Hyotei come all the way to Seigaku?

Oishi was taking a break, drinking from a water bottle as he commented, "Maybe they're discussing a joint practice in the future."

Eiji wrinkled his nose in thought. "A bonding session with Hyotei?"

"Like that training camp we had before playing Rikkai Dai?" Momoshiro wondered. He'd rather liked the camp, even though the frogs and bears had been annoying.

Out of the corner of his eye, Inui saw Ryoma coming from the direction of the captains. Making sure nobody was watching, he stepped up to the freshman and asked in a low voice, "Did you hear them, Echizen?"

Ryoma shrugged, placing his arms behind his head, "Not really."

The data man's glasses flashed. "Oh? Not even a little?"

Ryoma's cat eyes glanced at his senpai and he prompted, "Maybe I'll remember, maybe I won't."

A bargain. Inui understood immediately. "Echizen, you don't need to run any laps today."

Another shrug. "Buchou and Monkey King are going to have a battle to see who will win."

Pen scribbled madly across paper. "Win what?"

Ryoma suddenly scowled and began to walk away. "A girl." The boy wondered why he was feeling so irritated. Was it because of the heat? Or maybe it was the thought that two national-level tennis players were going to engage in a serious match over who won the heart of a girl. And not just any girl.

Ryuzaki Wobbly Hips Sakuno.

"Tch."

* * *

"Here you go." A fresh bottle of water flew and Tomoka caught it, managing a weary 'thanks.' He grinned back and observed her with some admiration. The girl had come back out dressed in the smallest guy clothes they had in stock, which was still a little loose on her. From the very start she had been focused as he explained the basic rules and forms to her, and watched him closely when he showed her some simple moves. He'd remembered who she was and why she was so familiar, but didn't remember her name. She didn't give it to him either.

She was a very quick learner, he soon realized, and by the time they took a break an hour later, she was worn out but satisfied. For a non-athlete _and_ a girl she was quite impressive, even though Sengoku went more for the sweet and feminine type.

Tomoka, on the other hand, felt like she was the slowest student in the world. Watching Sengoku pull off moves seemed easy, but actually doing them was harder. She slowly felt herself leaving the real world where all her problems lay and enter a new, stress-free world where there were just her boxing gloves, the sound of Sengoku's voice, and her body. It felt good.

She took one last sip and then stood, saying, "Okay, I'm ready to learn some complicated moves!"

He raised an eyebrow and said, "You can't just suddenly learn complex moves. At least, not for a novice like you." At her disappointed face he quickly amended, "But I guess I can teach you _one_ cool move." He winked flirtatiously. "Anything for a cute girl."

She only grinned confidently, "I bet I can master it."

* * *

When the bus jerked the sleeping boy for the second time, he figured it was time to get off the bus and see where he ended up this time. He had got on in the morning, but inevitably, he'd fallen asleep and next thing he knew he heard a girl talking on her phone quite loudly. Actually, she was only a couple seats in front of him, so he could hear her clearly. But he didn't really pay attention until he heard, "Hyotei and Seigaku will form a new bond of alliance and become close friends instead of rivals."

That woke him up completely. Hyotei was a well-known school and Seigaku was pretty much common to him nowadays, but the last time he checked he was pretty sure those two schools were rivals. And Kirihara had a pretty good memory (sometimes).

When he peeked over the seat he saw a girl with pigtails wearing a Seigaku High uniform. Somehow, those pigtails looked familiar, but he failed to remember the face and name.

"...Sakuno, thanks for your time."

Sakuno. Why did _that_ name sound familiar?

He shook his head. Never mind that, there was something more important going on—like the alliance between two strong schools. He was curious, and a little confused. The captain of Hyotei was that egotistical Atobe Keigo, and his eternal rival was the captain of Seigaku's team. Were they plotting something to make their teams stronger?

In that case, it wouldn't be good for Rikkai Dai. Or Yukimura. Or Sanada. Heck, it wouldn't be good for Kirihara (though he'd welcome the challenge any time).

He blinked. Of course. He had to tell his team as soon as possible so that they could commend him for his great work and then plan retaliation. Yanagi-senpai could get more information, and Yagyuu-senpai was very good at forming plans. Niou-senpai would help, of course (maybe) and so would Marui-senpai and Kuwahara-senpai…

* * *

The freshmen at Fudomine High were taking a competency test for the whole week. An was thankful that, as a second-year, she didn't have to take the boring test and she could go home early. The girl's tennis season was taking a break, so she didn't have practice. That was why, after lunch, she was walking straight home. Her brother, Kamio and the others were practicing their arms off (she heard something about slacking off on a Saturday morning, but she wasn't sure), so she was completely free.

Her phone rang, and she picked it up, thinking it was her brother trying to check up on her. "Hello? Onii-chan, you don't have to call me during practice—oh, Sakuno!" She broke into an eager smile. "So, how was your date? Did Tomo spill? Who's her boyfriend? What happened to Kaidoh-san—"

After several shocked seconds a loud squawk followed by "Whaa?" broke the silence, scaring some birds out of the trees. An didn't care. She was gripping her pink phone so hard that she thought it might crack. "Don't tell me… Kaidoh-san has a girlfriend?"

A few tense seconds and a couple apologies later, An hurriedly said, "It's not your fault, Sakuno. It was mine. And Kaidoh-san's. I can't believe it! Of all people, it had to be the flower shop girl." She began to walk faster, saying, "I'm going to have a talk with that girl. I'm getting answers no matter what."

When Sakuno tried to calm her, An noticed that her friend's voice sounded distracted and tired. "Sakuno?—Sakuno. Are you still helping out with that festival thing? I thought so. Don't push yourself, okay? Get some rest so you can enjoy the festival later. I'll take care of Tomoka's boyfriend and rival… or whatever. Got it?" When she received a laugh and a promise to get some rest, she smiled. "All right. This girl is going to get something to eat now, so I'll talk to you later. Okay, bye."

She put away her phone in her school bag, just as something flashed in her peripheral vision. Straightening quickly, she squinted and saw an old, frail man with a long beard being confronted by two unpleasant-looking boys. They seemed to be taking money from him. A flicker of righteous anger made An change her course and march towards them, hearing their words the closer she got.

"...understand, do you old man?"

"Just hand over all your money and you won't end up in the hospi—" A hand snatched the yen and An appeared in front of the old man, her expression fuming.

"What do you think you're doing to my grandfather? Aren't you ashamed of yourselves? How could you pick on someone so harmless?"

One of the two boys shoved her away, sneering, "Who do you think you are, lecturing us?"

"Hey, you look pretty angry. We were just asking your grandfather for some money, real nice."

"Yeah, so why don't you—" A voice cut them off.

"Didn't your mothers tell you not to pick on harmless people?" A familiar boy with an egg-shaped haircut appeared behind them, holding a backpack and a small, clear bag of water with a blue fish. He was taller, so it was easy to frown them down. "Why don't you two leave before the authorities come—" He barely had time to dodge when a fist sped toward his face. Then he was forced to move away as both boys began attacking him.

"Oishi-san!" An gasped, not knowing if she should help or stay out of the fray, and then decided to go with the former. "Take that, you jerks!" She swung her bag at one of their heads, causing him to stumble and growl at her. The boy then lunged, batting away her bag effortlessly. She gasped and squeezed her eyes as his hand flew toward her face, waiting for the painful impact.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed her arm and yanked her back; the slap missed her by inches. A boy with white and black hair flashed by her and knocked out the boy with a simple uppercut. Then he turned to the other boy, who Oishi was struggling with, and also dispatched him quickly with a few well-placed hits.

An was staring at him open-mouthed, wondering why their savior looked so familiar, when Oishi blinked and said, "Saeki-san!"

Saeki also blinked. "Oishi-san? What are you doing here?" He turned and looked at the old man, who was busy taking the yen from An and inserting them into the vending machine. "Ojii! Where have you been? The team has been looking all over for you!"

Rokkaku tennis team's coach was not paying attention, prodding An to hand over the rest of the yen. She blinked and said, "Oh! I'm sorry. Here." She watched as the old man nodded in satisfaction, and then she glanced up at Saeki and Oishi, who were staring back at her. "Um, this is a surprise."

Oishi smiled, holding up his fish and said, "I was buying this just down the street. Then I heard some arguing and I came here to check it out, and I saw Tachibana-chan and Ojii with these two bullies. Of course, I couldn't just leave them alone."

An bent down to look at the knocked out boys closely. There were bruises on their face, but it was obvious they were okay. "Saeki-san, where did you learn those moves?"

Saeki blinked a bit, saying, "Oh, those weren't moves. I do kendo, so it wasn't that hard, really…"

"You were pretty good," Oishi said with some admiration.

An nodded, "It was awesome!"

The Rokkaku player rubbed his neck modestly, "It wasn't that great, they were just a couple of bullies." Then his eyes widened and he exclaimed, "Ojii!"

The old man was nowhere to be seen. An looked at her empty hand and cringed. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

Oishi was shamefaced as well, offering, "We'll help you find him. Is that okay with you, Tachibana-chan?"

She gave a quick grin, replying, "Of course! And call me An, it's easier to tell apart my brother and me."

Saeki looked relived yet he didn't want to impose. "But are you sure it's okay? It might take another hour to find him, and I'm sure you two have important things to do…"

Oishi patted his shoulder with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about us, Saeki-san. We won't leave a friend in need. And Ojii is a friend of ours too."

"It's easier to find him with more people," An declared with a nod. "All right! Let's split up! Give me your guys' numbers." She whipped out her cell phone. The boys blinked at her.

Saeki nodded in understanding. "I see, so when we find him then we have a way of contacting each other."

"Not just that," An said cheerfully. She gave them a confident wink. "It's only natural to exchange numbers, since we met like this. Why shouldn't we know each other's numbers?"

Somehow, her words made sense, so they shrugged and complied.

"I'll call the rest of my team and let them know what's going on," Saeki told them, dialing on his phone.

An adjusted her bag. "All right! I'll go that way. Oishi-san, you go left, Saeki-san, you go right. I'll call you guys in ten minutes to update. Let's go!"

* * *

"A battle between Seigaku, Fudomine and Yamabuki… heard from Fudomine player Ibu Shinji…"

"A battle between Tezuka and Atobe… most likely involve Hyotei and Seigaku… both teams are unaware of the captains' fight, with the exception of me and Echizen…"

"There is a high percentage that the battle between Tezuka and Atobe will be more interesting… not to mention the data. Ii data…"

"But Fudomine seemed very angry… 45 percent probability that their battle plan will be creative…"

"So it comes down to this, eh?" Inui gazed down at his faithful notebook, his glasses gleaming. "I guess I'll go and warn Hyotei first."

Trouble was brewing.

* * *

She was beginning to remember when she had started to like him. It was during her second year of Seigaku Middle School, and he was the vice captain of the tennis team. Her crush on Ryoma was nothing compared to _this_. Why did she like him so much?

Deep down, Tomoka knew the real reason, but she was afraid to realize it herself. Perhaps it was the recognition that she'd liked him unconsciously, from afar, much longer than she'd dreamed of? There was a kind of appeal about him that she found attractive, and soon enough it was too late.

She had fallen for Kaidoh Kaoru. That scary, viper tennis player who had a soft spot for furry animals.

The days of screaming "Ryoma-sama!" was long gone, and a new door was approaching. It was time for her to grow up and move on. Or maybe she was just getting old…?

"Nee-san, Nee-san!" Something poked her back, making her blink. It was her youngest brother.

"Why are you staring at your hotdog like you want to devour it?" Her other brother, the more annoying one because of his stupidly intelligent brain and his smart mouth.

She scowled at them, putting her half-eaten hotdog on the park bench beside their tennis gear. "Because I'm hungry! Now hurry up and eat your food so we can go home." She huffed. "Honestly, you guys are too old to need a babysitter."

Taeki, the younger one, cheekily said, "We don't need a babysitter, we just need money." He expertly ducked when she tried to bop his head.

"Nee-san." Takeshi leaned back and glanced at her. "I'm thirsty. Get me another soda."

She stood and said, "Fine." He cracked a grin, but didn't see her fist coming until it was too late.

"Ow! Nee-san!"

"Mind your manners Takeshi," she said fiercely, giving him her best older-sister glare. "And say 'please.'"

He pouted. "Fine. Please!"

"I want one too, Nee-san! I'm thirsty from practice! Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, ple—" He stopped when she raised a fist and smiled widely. "Please!"

She rolled her eyes and sighed, knowing when she was defeated. "You two stay here while I get some drinks. If I don't see you two behaving, I'm throwing the drinks away, got it?"

"Yes, Nee-san!" they chimed. She shook her head and smiled.

Her thoughts inadvertently went back to a certain boy and she felt the tell-tale blush on her cheeks. The erratic beating of her heart didn't help, and she suddenly groaned. This was exactly the reason why she could look at him in the eye at school! The only reason she had confessed indirectly was so she could get over her lovesick reaction and actually talk to him normally.

She stood in front of the vending machine and inserted coins into the slot. Perhaps she had been going about it the wrong way. The goddess told her that in order to tone down her emotions she needed a way to pour it out. The boxing lessons were definitely a way to forget her stress and clear her mind. But when she returned to her normal life, the feelings, the blushes; they were all still there.

The machine willingly dropped down a can of strawberry Ponta, her youngest brother's favorite. She took it and stared thoughtfully. The indirect confession was supposed to be a catharsis, even like a medium, through which she could place her emotions on a substitute. It was a portable and convenient method. She nodded, clutching the can tighter. She would do it now, while nobody was around.

"Ahem. Kaidoh-senpai… You don't know this, but I've always liked you. I've been watching you secretly when you play tennis, and when I see you at school. And, um…" She took a deep breath. "I like you a lot. I have since I first saw you play. I didn't know it then, but…" She stared straight at the row of juice, seeing only one person in her mind's eye. "And now it's too late, isn't it? You have a girlfriend. She seems sweet and nice… she's your type of girl, right, Kaidoh-senpai?" A bitter laugh. "You have no idea how I feel. It was my fault for not realizing it sooner. All those times I cheered for Ryoma-kun… When really I was cheering for the whole team… and you, I guess. You didn't know that, huh?

"Would you believe me if I wished you and your girlfriend good luck? Yeah, I'm not a masochist. I really do want you to be happy. But to be honest…" She touched the cold glass with a hand, feeling her vision blur. "To be honest, I wish… I wish I was your girlfriend, Kaidoh-senpai. I know, I'm selfish. But I like you so much it makes me mad every time I blush and I can't even look at you in the eye." She sniffed and leaned closer so that her nose touched the glass. "I really, really like you, Kaidoh-senpai!"

After a pause she released her breath shakily, feeling something like a burden lift off her chest. Something still hurt inside, but she felt like she could bear it.

"Are you done yet?"

Her eyes widened and she whirled around. A tall, gray-haired boy wearing the Yamabuki High uniform looked down at her uncaringly. The spiky hair and those cold eyes were hard to forget, and she quickly stepped back into the vending machine, remembering the delinquent tennis player.

She had poured out to her heart's content in front of Akutsu Jin.

"Well? Can you get out of the way?"

The first wave of shock swept over her, and then the second wave of mortification hit her like a hammer. Her chin trembled, her breath hitched, her vision blurred and then she burst into tears.

* * *

Kachiro was in a really good mood. Not only was he not assigned to help out for the festival (he had cleaning duty) but his father gave him some extra money for helping out at the center over the weekend. He wanted to buy this really cool pair of shoes at the big sports store, and it happened to be on sale, so after school he found himself walking to the store. Just as he was turning the corner, he heard a girl crying.

It was in his instincts to immediately run over and see what was wrong, and so the nice boy ran around the corner. He stopped, barely contained a strangled noise, and leapt back. Gulping, he peeked slowly at the scary ex-tennis player of Yamabuki. His eyes widened when he realized that the crying girl was Tomoka.

The older boy didn't look like he was doing anything to her. But what were Akutsu Jin and Tomoka doing together? Could it be…? His imagination played a scene where Tomoka professed her love, but the senpai had rejected her, thus making her cry.

_"Um, __senpai." __Tomoka__ twisted the hem of her shirt nervously. "I… I love you, __Akutsu-senpai!"_

_He __stared down at her disdainfully. "So? What do you want me to do about it?" _

_She gasped. __"A-__Akutsu-__senpai!"__ She began to weep. _

No! He shook his head, knowing there was no way Tomoka would fall for a guy like him. And she would never weep, even if it killed her.

Then he blinked in realization. Of course. Akutsu was being his usual scary self and had threatened Tomoka as he was trying to buy a drink!

_"Stupid machine, it won't accept my money!" An irate __Tomoka__ tried to force her crumpled money into the machine. She didn't notice the shadow looming behind her until it was too late._

_"Will you get out of my way, little girl? You're wasting my time!" __Akutsu__ glared down at her. "Or do you want to die?" _

That made more sense.

So, now that he knew the situation, what should he do? Truth be told, Kachiro was still scared of him. Memories of being hit by tennis balls and then watching his senpai get beat up was not easy to get rid of, no matter how much he wanted to. He frowned and thought hard. And then he remembered a certain friend of the scary senpai, one who took karate in the same dojo.

"I've got to tell Kawamura-senpai!" he said under his breath, and with one last look back, he began to run. Tomoka would be okay, he reasoned. Akutsu was scary and mean, but he wasn't so mean to hit a girl. Right? Anyways, Tomoka was a strong girl.

Needless to say, he ran faster.

* * *

Akutsu Jin wanted to get a drink, but all the vending machines were temporarily out of order. After kicking them and getting yelled at by some adult, he'd searched for a working vending machine and found one in an isolated corner. However, a girl was already there. He calculated that by the time he got there, she would be gone.

He had been standing behind her for at least two minutes and she was still babbling to the machine as if it was the person she liked. Kaidoh, to be accurate. He remembered that snake from Seigaku. And he also remembered that brat, Echizen. He had no idea who the girl was though, and she was wasting his time. But there was no other working vending machine, and he was really thirsty, so he'd controlled his sorely tested temper and waited until she stopped talking.

But when the girl finally noticed him, she began to cry.

It wasn't like he hadn't seen a female cry in front of him before. His mother cried plenty of times because of him, and he'd never felt particularly guilty about it either. Tears were often a cheap trick used by women so that they could get a guy to do whatever they wanted. He thought it was stupid and believed guys who fell for it weak.

It was no different with this girl. What _did_ bother him was that he was pretty sure he didn't do anything to warrant her reaction, yet she still broke down as if it was his fault. It pissed him off. Deciding it would be a waste to spend any more time on her, he ordered, "Move."

Surprisingly, she did, but not in the way he wanted her to. She lifted her tear stricken face from her hands and had the gall to _glare_ at him. "You'd better not tell anyone what you just heard." Her hands were shaking.

He pushed her aside and inserted yen into the slot, pressing a button. With a loud clatter, the can dropped, and he took it. The girl was still standing there. Suddenly he slammed a hand on the wall beside her head, making her squeak in surprise.

He lowered his face and glared at her. "Is that a threat or an order?"

She swallowed. "Both."

It was a hot day. He was really thirsty and he didn't want to wait until he got home to get a freaking drink. All the vending machines were out of order like the pieces of crap they were, and then when he finally found a working one, a girl was talking to the machine (it was a freaking _machine_) and he had to wait for her to shut up so he could get that one drink. And then she had to start crying and _threatening_ him. He'd beat up guys for just _looking_ at him, yet this girl went above and beyond.

He decided she was an idiot, a brave idiot, and that she wanted to die.

* * *

She was an idiot. She was going to die.

But she still managed to look him in the eye as he glared at her. He was probably contemplating how he should kill her, which did not help her nerves at all. But this time she couldn't let herself back down, not when somebody knew her deepest, darkest secret. It didn't matter who it was—she had to do _something_.

His death glare abruptly lessened a tad, like he didn't want to kill her just yet. Relief trickled through her. "So?" he suddenly said. "What would you do to me?"

_Calm down_, she thought. _Think rationally_. If he tried to hurt her, then she could scream. Or she could pretend she was a very young mother and had two sons waiting for her. No matter how scary Akutsu Jin was, he would never go so far as to attack a mother. She hoped.

Then she had an idea. A stupid one, but if her assumptions about his personality was right, then it just might work.

Placing her can of Ponta carefully on the ground, she fisted her hands and slowly raised them up to her chin, assuming a defensive position. He arched an eyebrow at this, but she claimed, "I know how to fight. I-I'll knock you out."

If he was impressed by her bravery or how pathetic she sounded, he hid it very, very well. "Try," he told her. He was actually serious.

It was now or never. She bounced on the balls of her feet a little and then threw a quick punch.

_"Sengoku-san, I want to learn a real move. Like a knock-out punch!" _

_A laugh.__"How violent!__ Well, since I promised, I'll teach you one cool trick. Any normal person knows how to dodge a punch to the face, right? But while they're concentrating on that, you can throw them a whammy right in the solar __pelix."_

_"Can I try it?" _

_"Nope."_

Akutsu didn't dodge; he caught her fist easily. But her other fist was already speeding towards his exposed stomach. It was too late now. _Tomo__, you got him…!_

There was the sound of a can dropping on the ground, and it rolled a little bit before stopping. Her other fist was caught by his other hand. Her attack had failed.

_Not yet._

_"And if that doesn't work, just kick '__em__ hard." _

She kicked his shin.

After a moment he growled, "You're too weak." As if that wasn't surprising, he released her and began to walk away. He said without looking back, "You should tell the snake your feelings." And he laughed derisively.

She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but then she saw him tossing a can of strawberry Ponta up and down as he disappeared around the corner. A glance at the ground confirmed that he had stolen her drink. His own can was gone as well.

_I guess that's payment for his silence._ She sighed and slumped against the wall, feeling suddenly drained now that her adrenaline rush was gone. She had just stood up to Akutsu Jin and lived. It was a story worthy of telling her children, her grandchildren, if she had any.

And in the end, even a delinquent told her to suck it up and confess.

When she regained the energy to move her feet, she bought three more cans and walked back to where her brothers were waiting. They were probably wondering why she hadn't gone back by now. Her excuse was that the machine got stuck and she had to wait for an authority to help.

Fortunately, she didn't have to use the lame excuse. Unfortunately, her brothers were not waiting for her, and their tennis gear was gone as well. Instead, she saw a note on the bench.

_'Dear Nee-san: Sorry!__ As you can see, we're not here. Don't worry, we're not kidnapped. We just had something important to do—it was a class __A__ emergency! Meet us at the nearest tennis court and cheer us on! Love, your cute brothers! P.S. Don't forget those drinks!' _

The note crumpled as her fist shook and her eyes lit into flames. "Takeshi… Taeki… "

* * *

"K-K-Kawamura-senpai! You—you can s-slow doooown!"

"BURNING! I'M ON FIRE, BABY!!"

When Kachiro stumbled into the sushi restaurant, gasping about Osakada, a vending machine and Akutsu Jin, Takashi dropped everything (his father yelped when the huge knife thudded on the ground) and began to run. But Kachiro was lagging behind; already exhausted from his sprint earlier, so Takashi offered to carry him on his back so they didn't lose any time.

They'd forgotten that Kachiro was holding his tennis racket (he wanted to get a new grip) and when Takashi got a hold of it, well… Kachiro realized that his senpai had not changed from his tennis-playing days.

"Senpai, it's right there—no, you passed it! Back a little—okay!" Kachiro quickly took the racket from his senpai's hand and vowed never to hand it over so willingly ever again.

But Takashi was glancing around looking for his old friend and possibly a girl's body. "Where's Jin? I thought Osakada-chan was here."

Kachiro blinked. "Maybe… she's okay. Akutsu-san and Osakada-san were right in front of that vending machine."

"Agh!" Takashi clutched his hair. "What if they got caught by the police for fighting? Or maybe he threatened her into doing something for him. But… Jin wouldn't really do that, right?"

"Senpai. Senpai!" Kachiro sighed and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure it's nothing of the kind. I just panicked and immediately thought for the worst. Maybe they weren't doing anything bad."

"You're probably right," Takashi said, calming himself down. "Jin has no reason to do anything bad to a girl. He's not even on the Yamabuki tennis team anymore, so it's not like he has a grudge against Seigaku."

"That's right, senpai." Kachiro took his arm and led him away from the scene, back to the restaurant. It would take a long time to walk back, but it was better than giving the racket to Kawamura. "Let's go back. You don't want to keep the customers waiting, right senpai?"

* * *

_'As I thought, I should warn the __Yamabuki__ team first. Their situation might be worse than __Hyotei's.'_

Inui paused and looked out the bus window, watching as cars and people passed by. '_Tezuka__ and __Atobe__ are calm, if somewhat cold, people.__ Their calculating skills are on par with mine or even better. They will not charge forward recklessly, no matter how angry they are. __Momoshiro__ and __Kamio__, on the other hand, __do__ not have the same restraint. I have no doubt that the attack on __Yamabuki__ will be random and completely uncalculated.' _

He checked his watch: Only fifteen more minutes before he reached Yamabuki and then he would arrive just in time for their practice. Hopefully they weren't ending practice early. Something in his sixth sense tingled as a strange, portentous force approached him, but he pretended not to notice it until a tittering reached his ear.

"Oh? It's Seigaku's Sadaharu Inui." Smirking and twisting a strand of his dark hair, Mizuki Hajime raised an eyebrow at the taller boy. "What brings you on a bus that takes you so far from Seigaku?"

_'Mizuki__ Hajime. __Third Year.__ St. Rudolph's regular and manager. __Decent data collecting skills.'_ Inui pushed up his glasses and smiled ominously. "I'm on my way to Yamabuki to warn them." _'Also the most reputed gossip in the region.' _

Mizuki's eyes flashed. "Oh? Warn them about what?"

Inwardly, Inui smirked. Outwardly he said in a serious tone, "Yamabuki declared war on Seigaku and Fudomine because of a girl and decided to have a battle. I want to warn them that the losers will not only forfeit the girl, but will also be expected to serve their punishment."

All this information made Mizuki's mind whirl and he twirled his hair with more vigor. "And what is this punishment?"

Inui's smile became chilling. "It is a very healthy punishment. They will drink my newest, upgraded and un-tested vitamin Inui Juice." Out of nowhere he produced a small vial of bubbling, fizzing, hissing black-colored liquid. His lens blazed from the extraordinary radiation emitting from the drink and he held it up to Mizuki's wide eyes. "It doesn't have a name yet, but it will by this Saturday." His grin became shark-like. "Would you like a sample, Mizuki?"

One could almost see the small beads of sweat on his forehead as he backed away, forcing out a nervous laugh. "Ah-aha, no, I must decline your generous offer since I just ate a rather big lunch. Er, I apologize." _'He's going to murder someone!'_

"I see. In that case, I must wait until Saturday to observe the effects." To his horror, Mizuki could almost hear a trace of glee in the data man's voice as the vial of juice (poison!) disappeared. Inui adjusted his glasses again. "Oh, and by the way, the battle takes place this Saturday in front of the mall's flower shop at eleven AM."

Mizuki nodded. "Ah, thank you—" His eyes narrowed and he looked at Inui suspiciously. "Why are you telling me this?"

_'Very sharp.__ But not sharp enough.'_ Inui shrugged, flipping through his notebook as he said, "I thought that perhaps Fuji Yuuta should be notified about this since he is Fuji's younger brother, and it is almost a 99 percent probability that his brother didn't tell him anything. You are his teammate and manager, correct? I figured that you have a responsibility of informing your teammate about this, just as I have a responsibility of warning the other schools."

It was all in Mizuki's eyes. "Of course, Inui-kun, I will inform him of everything."

* * *

Stamina was a powerful weapon to have on the courts. If one never ran out of energy, their endurance could last throughout the entire game and match. It was one of the most important keys to winning. He, of all people, knew that, since it was his greatest weakness. That was why he always ate cake before a match and constantly chewed on gum—both for the glucose, and also sort of as a safeguard. It assured him that he would not lose the game because he was short on energy.

Stamina was one of the means to winning. Marui Bunta knew that. But he only ate cake and chewed gum to up his endurance for tennis, _not_ for running around and searching for certain annoying brothers who didn't bother to pick up their cell phones when their older brother called them at least fifty times.

"Honestly, where did those two go?" he muttered as he smacked on his gum. He'd been jogging around stores and parks for at least an hour, and if he didn't bring them home by dinner, his mother would kill him. For middle school students they were completely immature and exasperating. Just like him, his doubles partner once commented.

He blew a bubble restlessly. His eyes glanced over at a remote tennis court and he saw two familiar boys wearing Rikkai Dai Middle School uniforms. The bubble popped and he huffed, "They're _dead_."

As he went to the courts he could hear the two brothers arguing. For some reason, they were sweating and out of breath as they put away their rackets.

"If you listened to me we wouldn't have lost that point!"

"It's not my fault that brat kept pissing me off!"

"You should have ignored him. He was, what, three years younger than you?"

"What about you? That little kid practically knocked away your racket!"

"That was—"

"Oi!" They turned and blinked at Marui, who was standing at the gate. He popped a bubble. "Are you saying you two lost to kids younger than you?"

"Bunta-nii!" The younger one stood up and pointed at their middle brother. "It was his fault for asking them to play, even though we didn't know them!"

Marui raised an eyebrow. "So? You still lost to some brats, right?"

The brother still on the ground said glumly, "No, their sister dragged them away before we finished."

"They were winning 5-3." The youngest shrugged. Then he scrunched his nose. "That girl was loud. And scary."

For once, the two were in agreement. "Yeah, you could probably hear her a mile away. Those two boys didn't stand a chance." He shivered.

"I kind of feel sorry for them. She even hit their heads with those cans." He suddenly smiled innocently at Marui, his face completely unguarded for his eldest brother. "Hey, Bunta-nii, I'm glad you're _our_ older brother. You don't nag and abuse us like that scary Nee-san."

Marui looked at them and then smiled back just as cheerfully. "You two will always be my annoying brothers. Come on, let's go home."

They smiled back, relieved that he wasn't going to lecture them for "accidentally" ditching him an hour ago. As they passed him out the gate, his hand suddenly swooped down and he rapped their heads with his knuckles painfully.

"Ow! Aniki!"

There was a knowing gleam in his eyes he blew a bubble and popped it, saying, "What makes you think you're off the hook? Huh? You make me run around like an idiot for an hour, and when I find you two, you say you lost to a couple of brats? Hah! And what's this crap about no abusing? I'm going to make sure I get my full payment before we go home."

"Aniki—ow! Wait!"

"Ack! We're sorry, we love you! Bunta-nii!"

**End Part 2**

* * *

**A/N: I'm beginning to wonder if maybe ****Akutsu**** was too… eh. But oh well. That's how he's going to be like. Hope everyone was relatively in-character, and that there weren't too many mistakes… **

**Thanks so much for reading! I already feel warm and happy inside. XD**

* * *


	3. Part 3: Sakuno

****

* * *

**Part 3: _Sakuno_ (.x.****Bloom! Matchmaking.x.Saku's ****Misadventures Part 1.x.****Memoirs of a Cactus.x.)**

* * *

"Come on, you're going the wrong way." An pulled Tomoka's arm as they walked into the mall, toward the shops.

Tomoka immediately pulled away, heading to the second floor. She wasn't dumb. The flower shop was on the first floor. "I need to go to the bathroom." But the older girl was not to be deterred.

"Tomoka, I'm going to have a talk with that flower girl whether you like it or not. You don't have to come with me, but since you're going to hear it all from me anyways, you might as well come now." An flicked her long hair and gave a pointed stare. Tomoka soon crumbled.

"Fine. But only because you won't stop bothering me until I go."

An snorted as she led the way. "That's right. I always get my way in the end."

Tomoka rolled her eyes, remarking, "Maybe it's _that_ attitude that drives all the boys away, An."

"Hmph!" A toss of her hair and she retorted, "It's this attitude that makes me _wise_. And for your information, I probably have a lot more success with boys than you, Tomoka."

The pigtail girl became unexpectedly quiet. "You're probably right. No one's as bad as I am. I think I should just forget—ack!" An's arm wrapped around her neck and she pulled the younger girl closer.

"Sakuno's right, you really aren't acting like yourself," An declared, releasing Tomoka. "The Tomoka I knew wouldn't act so gloomy and pessimistic. What happened? I thought you weren't going to become one of those depressed, lovesick girls."

Tomoka blinked, rubbing her neck. She'd forgotten about her earlier vow. "I'm not depressed," she muttered, but it fell on deaf ears.

"Let's go! Sakuno's helping out with the festival right now, so I'm going to take her place and get you back to normal as soon as possible. I'm getting answers out of that flower girl no matter what!" An marched toward the flower shop, with Tomoka following half-heartedly.

The flower shop was as calming and refreshing as ever, and even Tomoka couldn't help sighing along with An as they stepped through the whispering chimes. The shop was full of flowers of all kinds, including cut bouquets and plants, not to mention the stuffed dolls and ribbons and wrapping paper. For a small room that was so full of flowers, the scent wasn't overwhelming and in fact, the fragrance filled their senses quite nicely.

A tall girl with a simple ponytail and an apron suddenly stood from behind the counter, blinking at them. She was the same girl who was with Kaidoh that Saturday. They stared back as she quickly smiled and said warmly, "Welcome. Please make yourselves at—" As she walked from around the counter, she tripped and fell.

Before they could ask if she was okay, she stood back up again and continued calmly, "Please make yourselves at home. If you want to rest for a little bit you can sit on a couple sofas over in the corner. You can also look at our selection of flowers in the catalogues on the coffee table. Just call me if you need any—" When she walked toward the sofas her foot suddenly gave away and she went down again. This time the two girls blinked as she stood back up as if nothing happened. "By the way, my name is Risai. Hanata Risai."

As the girl turned to go, An quickly called, "Ah, wait! Hanata-san—"

"Risai. Please call me Risai."

An exchanged a look with Tomoka. "Um, Risai-san—"

"Just Risai."

"Okay. Risai." An cleared her throat and said hurriedly, "Um, don't get me wrong. This might seem really rude and fangirlish of me, but it really isn't. I want to know if you are Kaidoh-san's girlfriend."

There was a pause as Risai didn't so much as react at all. "Who?"

"You know, Kaidoh Kaoru, the guy you were with last Saturday."

Another pause. "Oh, Kaoru? That nice boy? No, I shouldn't be his girlfriend." Risai gave another practiced smile.

Tomoka blinked disbelievingly, saying, "But I saw him give you flowers! Wasn't he asking you…?"

Risai blinked and laughed. "No, no, I was just doing him a favor. He doesn't like me that way, and I don't like him that way either." She watched as their faces grew relieved, and she tilted her head saying, "Do you two like Kaoru?"

"No!" they both said. An shot Tomoka a dark look, who elbowed her back with a look that told her to zip it. "He's just a friend from school. Oh, and my name's Tachibana An. You can call me An."

"My name is Osakada Tomoka. Nice to meet you." Tomoka didn't feel so badly toward the girl now that she knew Kaidoh wasn't involved with her in _that_ way. "Are you in high school, uh, Risai?"

"Yes, I'm a third year." Risai named a public school they didn't recognize. "I work part time here everyday except for Sundays. While I'm at school the owner takes over."

An looked around curiously at the bright array of flowers and asked, "Do you arrange flowers or do you just make cut bouquets?"

"Ah, I'm not professionally trained to do flower arrangements yet, but I can do small, simple ones." Her eyes brightened. "I have an idea. If you two have time, I can make a couple right now."

Tomoka glanced at An, and they shrugged. "Sure!"

As Risai went about gathering flowers and material, Tomoka asked her, "Um, does Kaidoh-senpai come here often?"

"Hm? Ah, well, it's kind of funny, but I've only known Kaoru for a week. He saved me from a couple Rikkai Dai bullies." Risai's voice became muffled as she bent down behind the counter. "I have yet to fully pay him back, so I'm doing him small favors." She suddenly straightened, smiling at the wall. "It's funny," she repeated. "I'm helping so many guys with their problems."

An was about to ask what kind of problems and how many guys, but the older girl unexpectedly lurched and fell… again. As she slowly got back up, An couldn't help but ask, "Um, Risai, are you… okay?"

Risai laughed lightly, brushing her apron. "Don't worry, I always do that. I can't seem to find my balance when I stand up suddenly. But I'm okay."

_It's no wonder she got bullied. Any girl as clumsy as __Sakuno__ draws trouble to her like moth to a fire. _

The two girls exchanged glances again, and An offered, "Can we help you with anything? We'd like to do something while you work."

"Oh, well, you can help me organize some stuff around the shop…"

* * *

_Wobbly hips._

_Your hair's too long._

_So clumsy…_

_You're too innocent, __Sakuno._

Ryuzaki Sakuno narrowed her eyes out the bus window and gripped the seat armrest harder.

_'No more. I'm not a baby anymore.' _

This time, Sakuno was going all the way to the next city by herself. She was going to buy those festival items that the class representative so trustingly asked her to take care of, even if it killed her. Now that she was fifteen and much more responsible, her grandmother had finally relented and let her go on this expedition alone. Sakuno was thrilled. This would be the first time in years that she could go outside all by herself.

_'I can do this. I'm a lady now. I won't let anybody down.' _

She gave a little yawn and felt her eyes droop a little. For the past few days she had been working so hard on the festival that she didn't really get much rest. She made sure to sleep properly, but it seemed that she didn't have enough energy to sustain her throughout the day.

_'A little nap won't hurt, right?' _

Slowly, she felt her mind drift away and sleep took over.

_'I wonder if I should start eating cakes like that __senpai__ from __Rikkai__ Dai…' _

* * *

"Wow, these bouquets are so beautiful," An admired as they walked out of the mall. Risai had made them a dainty bouquet each and told them it was free of cost. She said she needed the practice anyways.

Tomoka nodded in agreement, holding up her blue and violet spray. She wasn't much into flowers but like any girl she appreciated receiving them in any fashion. It smelled so good too. And she felt much better now that she knew that Kaidoh didn't have a girlfriend.

But she didn't know that for sure. She still didn't know what kind of favor Risai was doing for Kaidoh, and that bouquet of roses was mighty suspicious…

"...funny story. One of his teammates has had really long hair for years. But he suddenly said he was going to cut his hair. When asked why, he said somebody thought he was a girl while he was on a bus. She even called him 'Onee-san.'" An giggled into her bouquet. Tomoka nearly tripped.

Her eyes widened and she asked, "Um, did he say who the girl was?"

An frowned and said, "You know, he didn't. Saeki-san said everyone was laughing so hard to even ask. I don't think he really cared." She didn't notice her friend sigh in relief. Suddenly, An remarked, "Have you noticed Sakuno lately? She looks really tired."

"Actually, I've been wondering the same thing too. She's always insisting she has to work on the festival and when I tell her to rest—"

"She just smiles and says she will. Eventually." An nodded. "I thought so. I think we need to watch over her extra carefully for the rest of the week."

"Or year."

"I know, we'll call it the SSS Brigade!"

"That sounds a little too familiar," Tomoka commented dryly. "Why the SSS Brigade? And what do the S's stand for? Side-side-side?"

An rolled her eyes. "Haha. It actually stands for 'Sakuno Surveillance System'."

There was a pause. Tomoka admitted, "That's actually not too bad."

"Right? I'm a genius."

"Uh, no." Tomoka ignored her friend's indignant response and said, "We can start tomorrow, since she's probably still at school right now."

"Okay. I doubt we can do much today anyways. Let's go and outline her schedule so we can take turns being with her."

* * *

The wind blew softly, rustling her napkins and making her braids sway. She was sitting under a great cherry blossom tree, which rained soft pink petals and fell on her beautifully-arranged bento artistically. Her school uniform matched the scene and created a picturesque effect. But the girl herself did not pay attention to any of this.

Sakuno was lost.

It was bound to happen some way or another, but she'd hoped that just this once she would make it back home without any mishaps. She knew she shouldn't have fallen asleep on the bus. She knew that she wouldn't wake up in time to get off the bus at the right stop. She _knew_ she wouldn't have enough money to pay for the next bus fare home because she used it all up on that sleep ride. She knew all of this, yet she still felt shock and disappointment. She should have known she was too clumsy and irresponsible to do this by herself. What in the world was she thinking, believing she could make it to the next city and back without any mishaps?

And worse was that even though she remembered to bring her cell phone this time, the area had no reception at all.

Sakuno sighed and stared mournfully out at the bay, watching as ships and boats pulled in and out. How she managed to end up by the sea she had no idea. All she really knew was that she was lost and at least three hours from home. At least she had food with her. Too bad she wasn't hungry.

The cool wind was refreshing with a hint of sea breeze, but for some reason she felt very uncomfortable. In fact, she felt a little hot. Cross that, she was _burning_. But when the wind blew through her thin skirt, the breeze felt painfully cold on her sensitive skin. After she placed her uneaten bento aside, she wrapped herself in her arms, wondering why she didn't bring her jacket. For the second time her eyelids closed as she shivered and began to fall asleep.

_'As long as I'm lost and have no way to go home, I'd might as well rest a little more…'_

* * *

Onigiri. Sweet plum. Delicious.

His nose twitched and he began licking his lips. He could just taste the sticky rice and sweetness in his mouth. Something told him it was nearby, but he had yet to open his eyes and search for it. He sniffed the air and slowly sat up, but suddenly the world tilted and he fell off the branch he was sleeping on.

"Ow," he grunted as he landed on his palms and knees. Kintarou never learned the consequences of sleeping on a tree, even after two years. When he opened his eyes to look for the delicious food that had woken him up, he found himself staring at a girl's face. "Eh?" He blinked and realized he had fallen on top of a sleeping girl. He frowned thoughtfully at her splayed braids. "Hm. She looks familiar."

Then he saw it. The bento was knocked aside after his tumble, but some onigiri were still in the box. He eagerly took one and stuffed it in his mouth, closing his eyes in delight. It was so good! He reached for another one, not even bothering to move away from his position.

"Kintarou!" A strong hand grabbed his shirt and pulled him off the girl.

"Oh no! My onigiri!" The redhead tried to reach for his beloved rice ball but the same hand kept him from moving. He turned and saw his sandy-haired captain. His face immediately stretched into a wide grin and he greeted, "Shiraishi! Did you smell the onigiri too? That's why you came here, right?"

"Idiot." A dark-haired boy appeared from behind the captain, frowning at the energetic first year. "Do you have any idea how troublesome you are?"

Kintarou blinked. "Oh, it's Hikaru!" He suddenly made a face and pointed at him. "Hey, are you here to steal my onigiri? No! They're mine!" The boy made to lunge, but Shiraishi tightened his grip. "Aw, Shirai_shi_! I'm really hungry!"

"That's _your_ fault," Zaizen Hikaru pointed out.

"And they're not yours," the captain said. "What were you thinking, making a girl faint?"

Kintarou looked down at the girl, who was sleeping peacefully. He blinked in confusion, protesting, "But she didn't faint. She was already like that when I fell on her."

"Idiot," Hikaru repeated. Shiraishi didn't release his hold on the boy as he bent down to look at her. The girl's braids were flung over her neck and grass from the fall, and her cheeks were very flushed. She was also breathing heavily, and there was moisture beading her forehead.

"Huh?" Kintarou hunkered down to peer closely at her face, and he exclaimed, "She looks sick! Really sick! Does she have a cold?"

"A fever," Shiraishi confirmed as he felt her forehead. He straightened grimly and looked at Hikaru. "Call the others. Tell them we found him, and that we're going to be a little late." The second year scowled but took out his cell phone. The captain looked down at the girl again and sighed. "What was her parents thinking, letting her out like this?"

Kintarou was busy stuffing as many onigiri as he could, but at his captain's comment he suddenly perked up. Now he remembered why she looked so familiar. "Koshimae! She's Koshimae's girlfriend!"

"Kin-chan, don't speak with your mouth full," ordered the captain. He frowned a little. "Echizen? She was that girl with him during Nationals, huh?" He turned to the Hikaru, asking, "Did you reach them yet?"

Hikaru glared at the phone. "What kind of secluded place is this? There's no reception."

"Ah, Shiraishi! Hikaru! The girl's breathing weirdly! Isn't that bad?" At the boy's yelp they both turned and indeed the girl was beginning to breathe erratically.

Shiraishi decided only for a second before quickly going over to her. As he lifted her carefully in his arms, he told Hikaru, "Don't let him out of your sight. Let's go."

"Where are we going?"

Shiraishi shifted so the girl's ridiculously long braids hung down safely. "I know someone around here who can help."

Kintarou was staring at his captain holding the girl, and then he burst out, "Ah, wait! Shiraishi, your arm! She's going to melt!" Hikaru grabbed his collar and dragged him along.

"She's not going to melt." But the redhead could not be calmed and he struggled.

"No, his bandages are going to come off! Koshimae's girlfriend, don't die! Can you hear me? Whatever you do, don't go toward the white light! Waah!"

"Shut up!"

* * *

The atmosphere was thick with anxiety and tension.

"Freshmen!"

"Yes, sir!"

Kamio looked down at them with his visible eye and ordered, "Do you have the equipment?"

Horio held out his arsenal of BB guns and spit wads. "I have the long-distance weapons, sir."

Kachiro lifted his goggles and waved around his walkie talkie. "Here's the spy tools."

Katsuo also held up his walkie talkie and army helmet, saying, "I'm ready."

"All right." Kamio looked over at Momoshiro, who was busy poring over a piece of paper. "Do you have the plans set?"

"Just hold on a sec," the Dunk Smash player said irritably. He scratched his head, saying, "Oi, some of these don't even make sense. 'Shoot from ninety-degree angle when target is facing west, but only when the… wmph is null.' What the hell is 'wmph'?"

"Horio-kun, what's 'wmph'?" Katsuo whispered. The loud freshman cleared his throat with authority and rubbed his chin.

"Of course! That is a sound one makes when one is so absorbed in a girl's company that they can't say anything but 'wmph' because they are overcome with nervousness."

"Horio-kun, that's just you."

Kamio snatched the paper away, scowling, "These make perfect sense. And for your information, 'wmph' stands for 'wind mile per hour,' idiot."

"There's got to be another acronym for that," Kachiro muttered. The other two nodded.

Momoshiro glared and said, "What was that, idiot? You're not making any sense at all! Instead of making some elaborate plan, why don't we just go and confront Sengoku face-to-face?"

"And how will we do that, genius?"

"Simple. While he's in the bathroom, we jump him."

"That's too simple! Besides, what's the point in that? An-chan will think something's wrong and then next thing you know she won't speak to us ever again!"

"It's better than being misled by a playboy!"

Horio, Kachiro and Katsuo slowly crept away as the two argued loudly.

"You have no clue how to observe people! You need to be quiet and stealthy—"

"Excuse me!"

The second years turned and snapped at the same time, "We're busy!" Then they swallowed.

The elderly librarian tightened her lips and stared up at them with sharp, narrow eyes. "This is a place for people to read and study. You are disturbing them. Please leave."

"Y-yes, Ma'am."

"Uh, sorry Ma'am."

As the two boys left abashedly, the librarian shook her head after them. "Honestly, what are energetic boys like them doing at a library on such a sunny day?" She looked at the table and picked up a piece of paper. "'The Mission To Save Tachibana An-chan From That Playboy'?" She skimmed down the list of attacks and plans and then stopped.

"... 'wmph'?"

"Mostly likely it stands for 'wind miles per hour,'" a voice suddenly said, and she was startled to see a tall, glasses-wearing boy holding a notebook. "Interesting. So they did calculate." He pushed up his glasses. "I'm sorry, but could I have that please? I would like to return it to my friends."

She continued staring after him as he left the library. Then she took off her own glasses, wiped them on her shirt, and put them back on. "He looked just like my husband when he was that age. Boys these days…"

* * *

That was her, all right. Osakada Tomoka. Auburn pigtails. Mole under right eye.

"But she wasn't as loud as you said she was, Kaoru," Risai mused as she swept the floor with a broom. "Very quiet… yet determined." Her foot caught on the floor and she nimbly fell on her other foot, lightly twirling to place the broom back against the wall. She chuckled. "Then again, she thought I was your girlfriend. She probably thought I was her rival or something."

It was absurd, since she was trying to help him confess to his loved one. She walked over to the sofa and sank into the cushion, leaning her head back with a sigh. "All this matchmaking is making me tired."

"Are you slacking off during work, Hanata-san?" said a deep voice.

She tilted her head back and saw an upside-down boy with violet eyes. "Ah, it's Takahisa." She turned in her seat and gave him a smile. "This is the first time I've seen you here. How can I help you?"

He gave her a level look. "I keep telling you to call me Kajimoto. And I would like to ask you something."

"I keep telling you to call me Risai," she happily countered. "What do you want to ask?" She noticed he was avoiding her eyes, and even though it looked like he was looking at the flowers, he was definitely tense.

"What is considered the best apology bouquet?"

So that was it. She raised an eyebrow and remarked, "You could have told me earlier. It's for your date this Saturday with Akisa, right?"

He blinked and began, "Ah, it's not really a—" She waved a hand.

"A date, yeah, I know. You sent one of your tennis teammates to practice by himself and as you were talking to him, he accidentally missed and hit my cousin in the head. And as captain, you decided to take the responsibility and ask her out on an obligatory date. Thus, your apology bouquet, am I correct?"

Kajimoto didn't add that he wasn't comfortable with letting Wakato take her out since the popular ladies' man was more than notorious for dating many girls at one time (_Change… over_!). He merely nodded. "Since you understand so well, can I ask you to make a bouquet? As Irowa-san's cousin and close friend, you of all people should know what flowers she prefers."

She suddenly laughed, saying, "You know how to push the right buttons, Takahisa." Then she turned back in her seat and said, "But I'm disappointed. I thought after a few days you would already know what kind of flowers Akisa likes."

He ignored her familiarity of his name and asked, "What makes you think that?"

Risai shrugged and stood up, stooping to snatch a bunch of deep red roses. "These are universally used for everything, including apologies. You can give her these. It's on me." When he hesitated she smirked. "What? They aren't good enough? You _did_ ask me to make her a bouquet."

He shot her an annoyed look. "Irowa-san can't see those colors."

Of course, Risai already knew of her cousin's red-green color blindness. "So you _do_ know her well."

"It was the first thing she told me." Kajimoto turned to leave, but then stopped as his eyes caught something. It was small, yellow sunflower in a clay pot, almost hidden by the glamorous displays of the other flowers.

Risai also looked at the sunflower and smiled, saying, "I'll prepare a bouquet for her by Saturday. You're meeting her here anyways, right? Meet me by the piano near the entrance and I'll give it to you. Don't forget, Kajimoto."

He paused and then smiled back. "Thank you, Risai."

* * *

It was the raw parchedness in her throat and the murmuring of voices from outside the room that woke Sakuno. She felt exhausted and bewildered, but completely rested. As her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the room, she realized that the murmuring voices were getting louder. It sounded like footsteps coming up the stairs.

Wondering exactly where she was (all she remembered was the tree and the bay) and who was kind enough to unravel her braids and put her in a bed, she hastily sat up. Memories were starting to come back to her, and she realized with a start that she hadn't even bought the items for the festival. Was the class representative waiting for her? And Obaa-chan. The stern grandmother was probably tearing Seigaku apart in search of her. She had to hurry, thank the owner of the house, and be on her way.

In her daze she didn't realize how weak her legs were, and she clumsily fell with a thud on the ground.

"Ow!"

There was the sound of running toward her room and Sakuno mentally groaned. The fall had jarred her head, making her dizzy.

And then there was bright light.

* * *

After bringing the girl to his mother's distant relative's place, Shiraishi, Hikaru and Kintarou were forced to stay and eat. The old woman owned a store and lived on the second floor, so she had let the girl sleep in the guestroom. The Shitenhouji tennis players decided they might as well stay a little while, since the woman had so graciously offered them food.

The woman's great-niece, a graduate college student named Sarisa, and her friend Nanako were helping out at the store. It was Nanako who identified the girl as Ryuzaki Sakuno, the precious granddaughter of Seigaku's coach Ryuzaki Sumire. The boys were surprised when Nanako said she was Echizen Ryoma's cousin.

It had taken quite a bit of effort to keep Kintarou from begging her to take him with her. Hikaru was annoyed but contented himself with some rice cakes. Shiraishi politely thanked Nanako as she refilled his tea cup.

After a couple hours, Sarisa stood, saying, "I'll go check up on Sakuno-chan."

Shiraishi stood as well, walking toward the staircase. "No, Sarisa-san, we'll check up on her." He looked pointedly at his two kouhai and they immediately followed, albeit reluctantly.

As they walked up the stairs, Kintarou and Hikaru argued about Sakuno's eaten bento. Shiraishi suggested they shut up because they were guests and there was a patient sleeping. They sullenly stopped talking because the captain sounded testy.

That was when they heard the thud and a girl's cry of pain. Shiraishi broke into a sprint and beat his teammates (they got stuck on the stairway) and threw open the door, looking around for a potential assailant about to abduct the girl. When he saw it was just the girl who had fallen from the bed, he relaxed. Then he quickly moved to block the doorway as the other two appeared behind him.

Seigaku's girl uniforms were too short, he thought wryly.

"What happened? Is Koshimae's girlfriend hurt? Is she okay?"

"Stop pushing me!"

"Shiraishi, what's wrong? Why aren't you moving?"

The captain walked straight to her, knelt and subtly jerked the flipped skirt so that it covered her decently and saved her from further embarrassment. He had a keen feeling that the girl was a highly sensitive and self-conscious kind of person, and an indecent exposure of any degree was considered suitable motivation to die of mortification. "Are you okay, Ryuzaki-san?"

Sakuno blinked and stared up at him with wide, doe eyes that watered from the pain of her fall. She wondered why the tennis captain of Shitenhouji was right in front of her.

Kintarou suddenly got close to her face next to his captain, grinning widely. "Koshimae's girlfriend! You're okay! Hey, can you please, please, _please_ make some more of your super-delicious—ow!" Hikaru glared at him.

Abruptly, Sakuno stood up as she said, "Um, thank you very much for your kindness! I'm extremely sorry for troubling you, but I should go now. Y-yes, I should go…" Her legs trembled and she nearly fell on Hikaru (Wobbly hips strike again!). "I have to buy everything on the list… it's my responsibility. Everyone will be so disappointed in me if I don't…"

"But if you don't rest you won't be able to do anything," Shiraishi said, looking straight at her. At her crestfallen face he smiled a bit and suggested, "Why don't you give us the list? We'll buy everything for you while you wait here." He completely ignored Kintarou and Hikaru's vehement reaction.

The protest was on her lips, but when she looked at them, she knew there was no way they could be swayed. Her eyes filled with tears again, but this time she smiled in gratitude and bowed, her long tresses streaming to the ground. "I-If it's no trouble, then I will humbly impose on you for just a little longer."

A bandaged hand patted her head. "It's no trouble."

* * *

Nanjiroh was hungry.

His stomach growled so loudly that Rinko, who was just crossing the room to the laundry room, had to pause and stifled a giggle. He scowled.

Cross that. He was _really_ hungry.

"Just what is she doing?" he complained in a loud voice, sticking a finger in his ear. "Is she really volunteering at that shop? I bet she's with those old college friends of hers, drinking and having fun." Not that he disapproved or anything, but as it has been mentioned before, he was really, _really_ hungry.

"Complaining is not going to ease your hunger," his wife said pointedly. "Nanako will be back soon. Why don't you get some food out of the refrigerator?"

He pouted and made eyes at her. "It's too far. Will you get me some for me, Rinko?" She rolled her eyes and shoved a basket full of laundry at him.

"If you have so much time then fold these. Maybe it will take your mind off your stomach for once," she said half-teasingly.

The lazy ex-tennis player sat up and made a face at the clothes, remarking, "These aren't even lingerie."

"I know." She lifted an eyebrow at him. "Nanako usually folds them, which she so kindly did this morning before leaving. I want to at least get this load done before she comes back."

He carelessly picked up a white t-shirt that probably belonged to his son and grumbled, "If she ever does get back. Why isn't dinner ready yet?" His wife threw him a look and he subsided reluctantly. "Fine. Where's the brat?"

Rinko gave him another look and then looked up when the door shut. She smiled as Ryoma headed to the kitchen, "Ryoma! Welcome home! Dinner's not ready yet, so go ahead and wash up."

"Eh? Did you practice hard?" Nanjiroh decided to lie back down and he glanced lazily at his son. "Of course, it wouldn't hurt if you'd relax and go on a couple dates—"

"Baka Oyaji," Ryoma muttered. He went to the stairs, saying, "I'm not perverted like you."

"And thank goodness for that," Rinko said sweetly. Her husband gave her a wounded look that didn't fool her. Just then, the door opened and shut again and their blue-haired niece appeared. "Ah, welcome home, Nanako. Did you have fun volunteering?"

"Yeah, how many bottles did you—ow!" Nanjiroh rubbed his arm and sulked as his wife smiled at Nanako.

The girl merely smiled back. "I'm sorry I'm so late. I meant to be back by dinnertime but something came up and I had to take Sakuno-chan home." Just then, Ryoma was passing by, and at the mention of the shy girl he paused.

"Sakuno-chan?" Rinko wondered out loud. "You mean Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter? What happened?"

Nanjiroh opened one eye, "You mean the old bat actually untied the leash—ow! Rinko!" He rubbed the sore spot on his other arm, glaring at her.

"Well, apparently she was very sick… she had a high fever and fell asleep on her way shopping. Luckily, these three boys were kind enough to bring her to Mika-san's shop so Sakuno-chan could rest safely. Ah, they were also tennis players." She looked up at her cousin. "They knew you, Ryoma-san."

He blinked.

Nanako put a finger on her chin, saying, "One of them was a redhead. He was really energetic and kept calling Ryoma-san 'Koshimae'… or something like that."

"..." Ryoma narrowed his eyes. So that Kintarou guy had been with Ryuzaki. His hand twitched.

"Is Sakuno-chan okay?" His mother asked with concern. Nanako nodded happily.

"She was lost and didn't have enough money for the bus fare, so I accompanied her back home. Oba-chan, Sakuno-chan's a lucky girl," she giggled.

"Oh? Why's that?"

Nanako's eyes twinkled. "The three guys offered to do her shopping because she was still feeling unwell. And then they even asked to accompany her home all the way home. Not only that, but they were _very_ handsome."

"Oh?" This time Rinko seemed amused. "I see. She's a very lucky girl indeed."

"Not really." They turned and looked at the boy. Ryoma turned to go to the kitchen, saying, "She got lost and had a fever, didn't she? I don't consider that lucky." _'Not to mention that redhead was there to add to her misery.'_ To his surprise the women laughed.

Rinko was smiling. "Ryoma, as a guy you wouldn't really understand."

His cousin grinned as well, "Ryoma-san, Sakuno-chan was _very_ lucky."

He turned, slightly irritated as they giggled again. His father decided to call after him, "Oi, they're right. That's why you need to start dating if you want to understand how women think—OW!" This time he glared at both his wife and niece. "That hurt!"

"_You_ need to start thinking a bit before saying that kind of stuff. There's no way you'd know how we think, right Nanako-chan?"

He grumbled under his breath as they laughed, rubbing his very sore arms. His stomach growled loudly.

* * *

If there was one thing he cherished over tennis and photography, it was his precious collection of cacti sitting in his room, basking in the light from the window.

"How are you doing today, Alyssa-chan?" Syusuke greeted a small cactus pleasantly, kneeling down to trickle some water into its pot. It wasn't that he _named_ all of his cacti—no, this one was a special one. After all, it had been a surprise birthday present from two of his kouhai, Sakuno and Tomoka, and they had named it after a famous cartoon character. He considered their gift extremely thoughtful and made sure to inform them on Alyssa-chan's physical condition whenever they saw one another.

Over the past two years those two girls had cheered on their old tennis senpais faithfully, even though they were busy. He remembered the two had been small, young girls who showed up at Seigaku's matches and cheered on Ryoma, but only that. He himself had been busy and focused on other things. But as they graduated from middle school and once again became his kouhai in high school, he realized that they had grown, matured, and became much more than just two cheerleaders. They were sweet, caring, and above all, they had showed him consideration that went above any other girls their age.

That birthday had been a rather lonely one, he remembered keenly, what with Yuuta being gone on a school trip and his parents overseas and even his sister staying late at work.

_"Fuji-__senpai! __Happy birthday!"_

_"Ah, sorry we couldn't bring you a cake…"_

_"As a small token of our appreciation, we decided to get you this! __Ta-__da!"_

He would never forget their simple kindness, and since Fuji Syusuke was not a guy who took things for granted, he accepted their gift and also became their (sort of) older brother.

_"How's Alyssa-__chan__ doing?" _

_"Very well.__ She's grown a total of one inch so far."_

_"W-wow! __Already?"_

His blue gaze moved on to the other cacti, and he stopped at the largest one, a cactus nearly as tall as him. It had been his first cactus and a congratulations gift from his parents after he entered grade school. It didn't have a name, but he decided it didn't matter, since it was still very precious to him.

A breeze blew through the window, and a card fluttered. He bent to pick it up and recognized his sister's florid handwriting that wished him a happy birthday. She had given him a rather large cactus, having gone to the desert on a trip with her friends, and told him jokingly to name it after her. He declined very politely, but the joke still stuck. "Hello, Yumi-chan," he addressed with a smile.

Then he turned to another special plant. It had been the first present Yuuta gave him after he transferred to St. Rudolph. The surprise and happiness he'd felt when the plant was handed over with a mutter was still fresh in his mind.

He was about to water it when suddenly the door knocked. "Yes," he called, straightening.

The door opened and Yuuta's head poked in. "Aniki, Kaa-san says dinner's ready. And Nee-san says you should hurry up and get your stuff from the foyer." He glanced over at where his brother was standing and lifted an eyebrow. "Are you talking to your plants _again_?"

"Are you embarrassed?" Syusuke said laughingly. "Besides, I heard that talking to plants will help them grow healthier."

Yuuta rolled his eyes as his brother smiled, "You don't actually believe that?"

"Why shouldn't I?" Walking towards the door, Syusuke paused. "Oh, and Yuuta?"

"What?"

The tensai smiled teasingly, "Out of all my cacti, yours is the tiniest. Isn't that funny?"

Yuuta's cheeks turned red and he whirled around. "Shut up Aniki. Hurry up and come down." He stomped away, even as he could hear his brother's chuckles.

As he turned off the lights Syusuke took one glance back and smiled.

_"Here, __Aniki. I found it on the roadside. You like them, don't you? It was going to die anyway, so I thought you should have it." _

**End Part 3**

* * *

A/N: Hm. Er, so there's Shitenhouji! Or at least half of them. I wonder if I mangled their characters... And the OCs are getting lots of spotlight, ne? Oh well. More girls are good. I feel good. And so does Alyssa-chan. XD

Please forgive any mistakes or stupid misunderstandings or anything idiotic I put down. It's still all for a fun read, right? Oh, and I referred to him as Hikaru, his first name. I just like it better. XD

_Thank you_ for taking the time to read!

* * *


	4. Part 4: Risai

**

* * *

**

Part 4: _Risai_ (.x.**It's a Battle, ****desu!.x.****Saku's**** Misadventures Part 2.x.****Tomo's**** Fight Part 2)**

* * *

"What do you mean you can't come out of your room?" Tomoka's voice was high with incredulity, nearly deafening Sakuno's eardrum. She ignored the looks other people gave her as she marched across the busy street towards the ice cream shop she and Sakuno were supposed to meet at. "Sakuno, did you lock yourself in again?"

There was a sigh. _"No, __Tomo-chan. __Obaa-chan__ said I can't go out anywhere today."_ Sakuno's voice was patient.

"What in the world did you do this time?" Tomoka was familiar with her friend's tendency to cause accidents, and she was even more acquainted with the infamous grandmother's penchant of being overprotective of her granddaughter. But to the extent of not even letting Sakuno go to school was… "Tell me, Sakuno," she demanded.

With another defeated sigh, Sakuno related her woeful tale from the very beginning, starting with her bus trip and the fever. Tomoka nearly got run over as she listened wide-eyed to her friend's story, but of course she didn't care when the car honked at her.

_"And then __Obaa-chan__ swore she wouldn't let me out of her sight for the next month, and that's why I can't come out of my room unless I want to get lectured for another hour or so." _Sakuno's tone became apologetic, _"I'm so sorry, __Tomo__. You went to all the trouble of going to the ice cream shop…"_

"Sakuno…" Tomoka sighed. "Just don't worry about that, okay? I'm going to buy some ice cream and bring it over to your house. Is that okay?"

_"Oh, __Tomo-chan__, you don't have to…"_

"I want to. Trust me, Sakuno, this is the least I could do to—oomph!"

Tomoka crashed into a person, causing her to drop her phone. Unfortunately, the person was carrying a soft drink, which she realized when she felt the cold wetness on the front of her uniform. So shocked, she almost didn't hear the gentle male voice apologizing sincerely. A hand picked up her phone and the battery that had popped out, and handed it to her. She took it wordlessly and looked up.

"I'm so sorry," repeated Yukimura Seiichi, an expression of deep apology on his handsome face. Tomoka could remember that face from anywhere, the mild-looking captain of Rikkai Dai, one of Seigaku's biggest rivals. He politely ignored her stare and continued, "Let me pay for any damage I've caused."

"No, it's okay!" she automatically blurted, feeling a faint blush. That wall of a body she'd just bumped into was the famous captain who'd suffered a disease and had to stay in the hospital. It was silly, but she wondered if she'd hurt the delicate-looking captain. "Um, it's fine, I can wash it easily, Yukimura-san."

"Oh?" He looked mildly taken aback. "Do you know me?" It was rather obvious who _she _was, since she was wearing a Seigaku uniform and all, but he wanted to know her name. Only a day or two ago Kirihara had told the team something very interesting. It was out of pure luck that he chanced a run-in with this pigtailed girl who talked loudly on a cell phone—and spoke with someone named "Sakuno." It also took him less than a second to decide what to do with his drink.

Tomoka smiled nervously, "Well, it isn't hard to recognize the captain of Rikkai Dai's tennis team." She probably looked like an idiot, what with the huge wet spot on her uniform. "Um, I'm sorry too. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going—"

"Would you like some ice cream?" At her blank look he smiled and explained, "I really feel bad for spilling my drink on you. I'd like to at least treat you to something." And ask her a few questions.

She was astonished. "Oh, um, that's very kind of you, Yukimura-san—" He just nodded.

"Good. Then let's go, shall we?" The blue-haired captain began to walk towards the ice cream shop she had just been going to. "Could you tell me your name? I'd like to know who I'm treating."

Blinking, she hurried to catch up with him. "Um, Osakada Tomoka…"

"Nice to meet you, Osakada-san."

_How sudden. Is this... considered a date? _

* * *

Practice was finally over. As the tennis players panted and retired to the locker room, Eiji stopped and waited for Momoshiro. The unsuspecting second year was suddenly caught in a headlock, and Eiji teased, "Momo is spacing out, nya! You didn't even sense me coming!"

Momoshiro struggled in his senpai's hold, choking out, "Kikumaru-senpai! Ack! That hurts!"

After a while Eiji released him, laughing. "Aw, Momo, you need to pay attention! You were distracted during practice too, nya. Kaoru nearly knocked you out with that serve. What's wrong?"

Suddenly, Momoshiro began to walk away, saying hastily, "A-Ah, it's nothing, senpai! Absolutely nothing's wrong! Hehe. Er, I've got to go!"

Eiji frowned, knowing his kouhai was hiding something. "Momo! Don't lie to your senpai. I know there's something going on. Come on, tell me!"

But the dunk smash player disappeared. A hand landed on his shoulder and he glanced to see his doubles partner. "Oishi! Nya, there's something wrong with Momo and he won't tell me. He's acting suspicious, nya."

Oishi blinked surprised. "Suspicious? What do you mean, Eiji?" Suddenly sensing a presence, he looked to his side and greeted, "Hey Inui. Did you get any good data during practice?"

The data man nodded, scribbling something. "Momo is being suspicious. And he's acting distracted. Spacing out... how interesting."

The acrobatics player began to wrinkled his brow, asking, "Inui, do you know why Momo's been acting like this?"

After a pause the glasses-wearing boy looked up. They were surprised to see a serious expression on his face. "Kikumaru, Oishi. Do you want to know what's going on?"

Oishi exchanged looks with Eiji before asking, "What do you mean, do we want to know what's going on? _Is_ there something going on?"

"Nya, Inui," Eiji suddenly frowned, "does it have anything to do with that morning? By the street tennis courts?"

Inui pushed up his glasses ominously. "Yes, it does. Do you want to know everything?"

Feeling a bit uneasy yet intrigued, they both nodded.

* * *

_'This is it! I'm at __Seigaku, __desu!'_

A taller yet still small Dan Taichi stood at the school gates, looking up with an expectant look on his face.

_'He came here, __desu__. I want to know why __Akutsu-senpai__ came here, __desu.'_

The green band that was always tied around his head was now sporting a place on his arm, a reminder of his admiration for the (scary) senpai. He would always look up to Akutsu no matter what. That was why he came all the way to Seigaku when he heard a rumor than Akutsu Jin had appeared.

_'I almost never see him at school, desu. I wish he would visit the tennis club sometimes…'_ (Probably not a good idea)

He arrived at the tennis courts just as practice ended. As the members trooped to the locker room, chatting and talking about random things, he searched for some familiar faces. Preferably a regular, such as Echizen Ryoma. Taichi had heard that the tennis star had come back to Japan for a while and was eagerly waiting for a meeting… and a match.

"Hey Inui. Did you get any good data during practice?"

His head shot up and he grinned when he saw Inui, Oishi and Eiji. As he got closer to them he opened his mouth, when the data man suddenly said,

"It's a plan to attack Yamabuki."

He stopped in his tracks.

_'What?'_

"Fudomine is involved as well."

_'Fudomine?'_

Realizing they had not yet noticed him, Dan backed away quickly and silently, until he was hiding behind a corner, and listened wide-eyed.

"...warn them, but Sengoku-san wasn't there…"

_'Sengoku-__senpai?__ Warn who?' _

Something unpleasant began to settle in his stomach.

"...a battle over girls. Particularly Tachibana An from…"

_'Girls, __desu?__ Battle? Tachibana…?'_

"...take place this Saturday at the mall at 11 AM. Do you know the new flower shop…"

And then it all clicked. Dan understood. He clenched his fists.

_'I've got to go warn Sengoku-san right away, __desu!'_

* * *

The chimes rang and Risai looked up with a welcoming smile, "Good afternoon, welcome to—Akisa!" She straightened from watering the sunflower and gave her a genuine wide smile, saying, "Wow, I've been getting a lot of visitors lately. Why are you here?"

Her best friend and cousin looked around the store contentedly, remarking, "Lots of visitors? That's a surprise, considering you never remember anyone besides your family. Do you get a lot of customers?" Her gray eyes lightened as she went to a stuffed puppy holding a rose in its mouth. "So cute. I love this store."

Risai pouted, "I remember people besides my family. _Lots_. And yes, we get a lot of customers. It's the only flower shop in this mall." She watched as Akisa walked slowly around the shop admiring the displays. She cleared her throat, "Hey, what's your favorite flower? In general."

"In general?" Her cousin paused and gave her an odd look. "I already told you a long time ago."

"I forgot," she supplied. And then winced.

Akisa just smiled and continued to walk. "A fragrant flower. One with a scent."

Risai blinked, asking, "Like a rose?"

Another smile. "Yes, like a rose. Is it too cliché?" When the worker shrugged, Akisa continued, "But I would also like to appreciate the flower's beauty. A rose's shape and scent is wonderful, but when I can't look at it in its entirety, then I guess the appreciation seems incomplete. A deep, red rose isn't really a deep, red rose without its color, right?"

Risai wanted to ask what her favorite color was, but then stopped. Instead she said, "You know that guy I've been helping? His soon-to-be girlfriend came to visit me." She watched her cousin turn around with a surprised face.

"You actually _remember_ her? This matchmaking must be very important to you."

Risai ignored her. "She and her friend thought I was Kaoru's girlfriend."

"Isn't that his first name?" Akisa frowned in disapproval. "And didn't he save you from those bullies? You can at least stick an honorific on your hero's name." The forgetful girl only shrugged cheerfully. "Risai… you're so heartless. You forget a person the minute you meet them, and if you _do_ remember them, you degrade them by calling them their first name."

Bristling, Risai retorted, "They don't mind! Nobody really cares. Except for Nanako and your boyfriend."

"Kajimoto-san is not my boyfriend, and he's perfectly normal, for your information." Akisa shook her head and sighed. "By the way, my sister had some interesting visitors at the store the other day."

Risai stooped to pick up some dead leaves around an orchid and asked, "You mean Sarisa? How is she these days?"

"Good. Oh, she and Nanako-san are planning to come by this Saturday. They're interested in your flower shop."

"It's not mine."

"Anyways. It was very slow back in the store and they were thinking of closing for the day. And then, suddenly three handsome guys walked in, and one of them was carrying a cute girl with very long braids…"

* * *

Sakuno sneezed. Startled, she nearly dropped the Tupperware of home-baked cupcakes, but her three and a half years of tennis experience reflexes kicked in and she managed to save it from a disastrous fall. Unfortunately Ryuzaki Sumire heard the sneeze and appeared in the hallway, frowning.

"Sakuno, are you still sick? We don't have to go if you don't feel good."

Her granddaughter shook her head quickly and smiled. "I'm okay, Obaa-chan! Really. I just breathed in some dust. Besides, you have to go to that meeting." And the elder Ryuzaki wouldn't let Sakuno out of her sight, so _she_ had to go too.

Sumire sighed and looked at her granddaughter. "Fine. I would normally let you stay home, if I knew you wouldn't go galloping off to help out at that festival."

Sakuno pouted. "But Obaa-chan, the festival is tomorrow evening—"

"No buts! This festival nearly drained the life out of you and I will not stand for that! Honestly, you're not their slave." Sumire fixed a stern eye on her and said, "You're lucky I'm letting you go with An this Saturday. I trust her to keep you from joining the Salvation Army and feeding every homeless person and animal on the streets."

Sakuno had to laugh. "Obaa-chan, let's go. You don't want to be late."

"And you didn't have to stay up so late and bake those cupcakes," Sumire complained as she put on her shoes. "It's just a meeting with the other tennis coaches at Hyotei. Just because the school is rich doesn't mean _we_ have to be extravagant about it…"

"Yes, Obaa-chan," the girl said patiently, nearly pushing her grandmother out the door. "But it is also a goodwill reunion, and I wanted to bring _something_." She paused and worried, "Maybe it's not enough. Maybe I should have baked some more—"

This time Sumire had to pull her granddaughter out of the house. "No, no, the cupcakes are fine. You did a good job." She sighed. "I'm sorry, I was just worried about your health. No matter how old and mature you get, you will always be my clumsy, precious granddaughter."

At this, Sakuno beamed and took her grandmother's arm. "Yes, Obaa-chan!"

* * *

"Did you hear? About those two bullies who disguised themselves as Rikkai Dai students…"

"I got a call from my sister just now… they were targeting all the kids from Fudomine, Ginka…"

"...a couple of little boys turned them in, they say. Amazing…"

Tomoka glanced back curiously at a group of Seigaku students, wondering what that was about, when her phone rang. "Hello? What is it, Takeshi?" She continued walking, mindful of the little kids rushing past her.

Then she stopped and cried, "Gauze? Why would you need… Is he hurt? I swear, if you two are bleeding and dead by the time I come home… Okay. Ointment? What else do you need…? Fine. Don't move. I'll be home soon."

She raced to the nearest drug store. A minute later she was out and racing home, not caring if people stared. The second she entered the house she shouted, "Takeshi, Taeki, where are you?"

"Here, Nee-san." Relieved that they were not lying comatose somewhere, she went to the living room and froze. Her brothers were sitting on the couch, watching TV. Their school bags and tennis gear was lying all over the floor, but she didn't care at the moment.

Takeshi was sporting a magnificent black eye and his hair was tousled. There were scratches on his face, a bleeding lip, and more bruises on his arms. Taeki had scratches and bruises as well, but there was a large cut on his leg that was pathetically staunched by a small cloth. They stared at the TV, not seeming to notice their sister, or rather, pretending not to notice her presence so as to prolong the painful interrogation that was bound to come.

_"Takeshi. __Taeki_."

They winced at her tone and opened their mouths to explain, but she quickly took out the purchases from the bag and began tearing the bandages open. The look on her face made them silent, and even when she applied the ointment on, they didn't complain. They didn't dare to.

"Ow!" Taeki couldn't help yelping as Tomoka cleaned the wound on his leg. "That _hurts_, Nee-san."

She glowered but applied it a bit more gently. "You two have a _lot_ of explaining to do. First, I won't tell Kaa-san if you tell me everything right now. Second, if you two were in a deliberate fight, then I will personally rip off all your bandages and rub alcohol—"

They cringed. "Okay, okay, Nee-san!" Takeshi sighed and shared a commiserating look with his brother. "We didn't start the fight. Taeki and I were just walking home when we saw a couple Rikkai Dai kids harassing a girl. So being the gentlemen that we were, we went and told them to stop. They told us to make them, so we did. We managed to attract the police, and the girl helped back us." He cracked a grin that looked nearly comical with his panda eye. "We're heroes, Nee-san. You can't really blame us for that."

Tomoka continued glaring at them but then eventually sighed and gave in. "But that was very dangerous. You'd better not do it ever again. They could have stabbed you instead of just cutting your leg!"

Taeki laughed a little embarrassedly, "Well, they weren't carrying knives. As I was walking home with Nii-san this blue-haired guy from Rikkai Dai tripped me. I fell on some broken glass, but it didn't hurt that bad." He gave her a sunny grin. "You forgive us, right Nee-san?"

She sighed, but it was a sigh of defeat. "You two will be the death of me."

"We know," Takeshi answered cheekily. "So, you won't tell Kaa-san?"

"Not this time," she consented. As they sighed in relief she fixed them with a pointed glare, ordering, "If you see bullies harassing a girl, call the police. Don't just fight them and think you're going to win. Or at least call me so I can go and beat them up myself." She began to grin and ruffled their heads. "Nobody messes with my brothers and gets away with it."

"Ow, Nee-san!"

"My hair!"

"All right! Come on, you guys, I bought the ice cream you wanted." She grinned as they cheered and trooped into the kitchen.

* * *

An thought she was in twilight zone. She had gone to watch her brother's team practice when, suddenly, Momoshiro, those three freshmen boys, and a reluctant Ryoma appeared out of nowhere. Kamio and Shinji greeted them as if they were all good friends and asked her brother if they could be excused early.

Shockingly enough, her brother agreed. Not only that, but the blond told them to have fun.

_Have fun_.

She couldn't have been more shocked. And just the day before she thought nothing could be more earth-shaking than seeing Tomoka and Yukimura Seiichi eating ice cream together. Of course, _that_ had been cleared up when Tomoka (frantically) explained the soda spill, and then they happily went to Sakuno's place with strawberry ice cream.

But this. This… was absolute madness. Something was afoot.

Once her brother left for the bathroom, she unsheathed her terrible power (not really) and rounded on the remaining tennis team. If there was one person scarier than Tachibana, it was Tachibana-imotou, and she was well aware of it.

"What the _hell_ just happened?"

For their credit they didn't tremble before her. And she couldn't get a single hint out of them.

So much for her terrible power.

* * *

"Over the past two years our school administration has been emphasizing on the reconstruction of the sports facilities and has hired over ten companies to design blueprints of…"

She tried to pay attention, she really did, but it was hard. As Sakaki Tarou, coach of the esteemed Hyotei High tennis team, led the Ryuzaki's down the elegant halls of the school, Sakuno was trying not to squirm. She knew she should have used the bathroom before coming, but as usual, she'd been too worried about her cupcakes to remember.

Softly, she tugged her grandmother's sleeve and whispered, "Um, Obaa-chan, where's the restroom?"

Sakaki had exceptional hearing. He stopped and glanced back at the girl, informing, "The closest restrooms are back towards the entrance hall, to the right."

"A-ah, thank you." She bowed and looked anxiously at her grandmother.

Sumire sighed and nodded at her. "Go on, and leave your cupcakes with me. Just call me if you get lost."

"Okay." Blushing, she bowed again and quickly ran off.

After a moment Sakaki said, "Shall we go on?"

Nodding, Sumire spared one last glance at the pigtailed girl before following.

* * *

"Nya, Inui? Are you sure this is okay?"

"Kikumaru. Has my data ever been wrong?"

"Yes! Many times, nya!"

"Now Eiji," Oishi tried to calm his friend, "I'm sure Inui means well. After all, this _is_ a rather grand school."

Eiji still didn't stop frowning, "But why are we going through the back entrance, nya? Are you sure we can sneak through the bushes like this?"

"It almost seems like we're trespassing," admitted the vice captain.

"We are trespassing, nya."

Inui pushed up his glasses, frowning as well. "My data says that the tennis courts are located near the edge of the school, close to the woods. This should be the quickest way." He pushed aside some branches, ignoring the leaves in his hair, and stopped. "Just as I thought."

"I see the courts! See Eiji, it worked out fine after all," said Oishi with some relief. He was uncomfortable of the idea of trespassing. "So, what do we do next, Inui?"

"I can't believe we climbed the school walls just to warn them about the battle, nya," Eiji muttered. He gave his doubles partner a look. "Oishi, I can't believe you either! You're usually the one stopping me before I do something like this."

Inui froze. "We better move before security finds us."

Eiji and Oishi stared at him. "Security?"

In the distance they could hear dogs barking.

"Hurry, this way!"

"Inui! Why didn't you tell us there were _guard_ dogs?"

"I didn't know--"

"Run before we're eaten!"

* * *

Not again. She couldn't be lost. _Again_.

But there was no mistaking it. She'd passed this painting (that looked suspicious like Atobe) at least six times. And then, somehow she'd missed the entrance and found herself outside. Not only that, but she'd forgotten her cell phone so she couldn't call her grandmother.

Sakuno was lost. And she still needed to use the restroom.

"Oh? Who is this?"

Startled out of her wits by the sudden voice, she whirled around. Unfortunately, her toe got caught and she fell forward with a squeak, into somebody's chest. (Wobbly Hips strike _again_!)

When she pulled away, stammering an apology, a shrill voice cried, "Commoner! How rude! How dare you contaminate the Drama Club President!"

"Now, now," said a tall, handsome boy with green hair. He had dreamy, hazel eyes and a smile than seemed to sparkle. "Calm down, my kittens. We mustn't scare off the little doe."

Sakuno eerily had a vision of Atobe Keigo in this strange boy, only, this boy was much stranger. And Atobe didn't have a small entourage of girls who tossed rose petals in the air around him. "U-um," she began, bowing low, "I-I'm extremely s-sorry! I-I wasn't p-paying atten—"

"Of course you weren't paying attention!" A pretty girl with a very high voice screeched, making Sakuno wince.

"I-I'm very sorry—" But the Drama Club President waved a hand.

"No need to apologize, little doe, for I have forgiven you." The girls all gasped and began exclaiming how wonderful and kind he was, as he continued to smile dazzlingly at Sakuno. "In fact, because of your remarkably beautiful braids, I will allow you to become my number one servant of the day."

Sakuno felt very much like fainting as the entourage wailed about how incredibly lucky she was and how they wished to be his number one servant. _'Just how do I keep getting myself into these kinds of things?' _

"Oi, back off." At the new voice, she turned around and saw a familiar boy wearing a cap backwards. She blinked in surprise, along with the Drama Club President and the girls. He looked at them coolly. "She's not yours to take."

Sakuno blinked hard. "E-eh?"

"Oh?" The President sneered at him and said haughtily, "I don't think you get a say in this, Shishido-san. I claimed her first."

Shishido merely cocked an eyebrow. "First? I don't think so. Unless Atobe changed his mind, then I don't think you were the first." He added wryly, "And Atobe doesn't change his mind easily."

The President turned pale. Even the girls became silent. Apparently, there was no argument when Atobe was in the picture. "H-hmph! I did not need the little doe anyways! Come, we must go!" They scampered off in a trail of dust and rose petals.

Shishido sighed and put a hand on his head. "That creep gives me a headache. Honestly, he's worse than Atobe."

"U-um…!"

He looked at her in mild surprise. She was bowing very low, her braids nearly brushing the ground. "Thank you very much! I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come, Shishido-san!"

He stared at her uncomfortably. "Uh, yeah, it's not a big deal. Anyways, what are you doing here? You don't look like a Hyotei student."

She gazed up cautiously, shaking her head. "I-I'm not a student here. Um, my name is Ryuzaki Sakuno, and I came here with my grandmother…"

He blinked. "Wait. Ryuzaki? You're Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter?"

"Ah, yes!" She beamed at him.

_'Ryuzaki__ She must've come for the coach's meeting.'_ Shishido considered his options. The girl was obviously defenseless since she nearly became the Drama President's next victim. She was also the granddaughter of Ryuzaki Sumire, the world's scariest tennis coach. If anything happened to her and the old woman somehow got notion that _he_ was involved… he gulped. _'No help for it. I __gotta__ stick with her and make sure she doesn't get into any trouble.' _

Sakuno was staring at him. She hated to be a nuisance, but he had already helped her out once, so maybe… "U-Um! Shishido-san!"

He was jerked out of his thoughts. "Huh?" She steadily turned red as she stared at his shoes.

"D-do you know where the restroom is?"

* * *

"Thank you for your purchase! Please come again!" The bells rang as she pushed out of the store, holding a few of bags. She made a face at a bag of carrots.

"Honestly," she muttered, "and I was going to take a shower. Kaa-san could have called me earlier to pick up the groceries." It was true. She was dressed in a tank top and shorts, and her hair was down. But then her mother called her, saying she would be late and asked Tomoka to make dinner. "At least the boys are safe… for now." Her brothers had covered up their bruises with make up, but her mother would easily see through them.

She looked up at the sky. The sun was setting, and the golden light spread across the sky, tinting the clouds red and pink. It was so beautiful that she stared up at it for a while, sighing peacefully.

The next thing she knew, her foot caught on something and she fell, grocery bags and all. "Ah! Crap!" Not caring about the pain in her palms and knees, she hurriedly picked up the rolling potatoes before they got run over by a car.

Furious and embarrassed by her uncharacteristic clumsiness, she didn't hear the quiet snicker or the person behind it until she reached for a tomato. A shoe stepped lightly over it, stopping her. Startled, she looked up.

"Heh, what a ditz. I've never seen someone as clueless as you." The ice blue hair and the evil smirk, not to mention the Rikkai Dai uniform, were all too familiar. Tomoka remembered his mean spirit from the match against the Golden Pair during the Kantou finals. The trickster named Niou Masaharu. He was leaning against the wall, his hands in his pockets as he scoffed, "Are you blind? I stuck my foot out a mile and you _still_ tripped over it."

She had heard rumors about him over the past years, about the guy who was called a terror by all the girls, Rikkai Dai students or not. While he did not victimize any girls she knew personally, the stories of his cruelty and not-so-good intentions made her righteously angry. She often thought of confronting him and giving him a piece of her mind, but Tomoka was not stupid. She'd already risked her life by standing up against Akutsu Jin. She valued her life a little more now than to offend Niou Masaharu, even though she personally thought there was nobody scarier than Akutsu.

"Can I have that?" she asked calmly, pointing to the tomato under his shoe.

If he was surprised that she was not upset, he quickly hid it by smirking. "Isn't there a magic word?" he taunted.

_Calm down_. "Can I have that please?"

For a moment he looked disappointed, which rapidly turned to disgruntlement. His foot rolled the bruised tomato towards her and he said scornfully, "How boring. A polite girl. I suppose your mother raised you to be airheaded as well?"

_Breath._Tomoka was breathing fire inside. No matter how much patience she mustered, this guy was pushing it and pushing it to the limit. "I'm sorry," she said through gritted teeth as she picked up her bags, willing herself not to snap at him. Being around Sakuno hadn't exactly helped her control her temper, contrary to common belief.

"Why don't you give me some food if you're so sorry? The money I took from those boys didn't even last me until practice and I'm starving."

She clenched her jaw.

"It pissed me off, since they beat up those imposters before me. I should have tripped _both_ of them."

_Trip?_

"Well? How long are you going to stay there?"

The bags fell with a thud. He merely raised his eyebrows as she turned to face him, her eyes shadowed.

"Huh? You didn't have to give me all of them. Damn, you really _are_ polite."

She clenched her fists, which were trembling with rage. All the insults, the humiliation, the anger… everything was boiling within her until she felt like she would explode.

_I'm too weak… huh?_

Niou narrowed his eyes at the girl's bent head. What was wrong with her? Was she crying? But then she raised her head, and he was surprised to see her glaring fiercely at him. Finally, he thought, this was getting interesting. "What is it? Do you want to say some—"

"Shut up!"

He jerked back. Her eyes were blazing. "You _bastard_!" She drew her arm back.

Before he knew it, her fist whirred into his jaw.

* * *

Gakuto stared. Everyone stared.

Heck, even Atobe stared.

The Hyotei tennis team stared as the three worn, torn, dirty regulars of Seishun Gakuen stood wearily, but proudly, before them. Eiji and Oishi were helping each other stand up as dignified as they could, what with the dog slobber and torn clothes. Inui had a crack in his lens and there were twigs and leaves stuck in his hair. He was holding a very soggy and dirty notebook.

Finally, Gakuto managed to choke out, "What hell did _you_ come from?" There were sounds of agreement.

Inui adjusted his glasses and said, "Good question. But that is not important. We have come from Tezuka to warn you."

At the mention of his rival's name Atobe immediately said, "Oh? Tezuka sent you?"

Inui nodded. "It is concerning the battle that will take place this Saturday at the mall, in front of the flower shop, at 11 AM. We assume that you must be aware of the challenge, since you have already obtained contact with Ryuzaki Sakuno."

Atobe nodded knowingly. "Then Tezuka has answered Ore-sama's call. He even sent his teammates in this fashion to display his strength. He is indeed a rival worthy of Ore-sama. Right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

The team, however, was not as enlightened. "Huh?"

Eiji fanned Oishi and then himself. "Nya, Inui, can you hurry up? We're about to faint here."

"Okay," Inui nodded. He turned to the Hyotei team. "Just as a warning, whoever loses the battle will be forced to drink this." Out of nowhere he produced the same black vial he showed Mizuki on the bus. This time, however, it was twice as dark and bubbling furiously. The odor was so strong that Eiji and Oishi nearly did faint. His glasses flashed through the steam at the alarmed faces. "A nameless product, and one of my best yet. Would you care for a taste?"

_Yeek_. "They are insane," Gakuto muttered, eyeing the vial warily. Hiyoshi nodded jerkily.

Atobe scoffed, unfazed by the threatening drink. "That's only if we lose. But tell this to Tezuka: Ore-sama will defeat him!"

Inui grinned in a sinister way. "I will."

* * *

Fuji Yuuta was on a mission. And it wasn't a mission-impossible-do-a-crazy-stunt-dare-thing-that-his-teammates-concocted-again kind of mission. It was a time-to-find-out-what-my-older-brother-is-planning-_again_-under-that-sadistic-smile kind of mission. Yes, _that_ kind of mission.

"Aniki, why are you smiling like that?"

"Why am I smiling like what, Yuuta?"

Needless to say, he wasn't getting much progress.

"Patience," Mizuki-san had said. "In _my_ experience, when dealing with Fuji Syusuke you must take one step at a time."

_Your experience consist__s__ of being completely ignored every time you attempt to talk to him_, he refrained from pointing out. His senpai had a point though. Dragging out even a single speck of information out of his brother was excruciating and took up every ounce of patience he had in order to not mess up. The mission was a rather delicate one that his entire team (but mostly Mizuki) entrusted on him.

_'Right.__ I can't fail them_.' He nodded resolutely and once again searched for his brother.

He found him in the living room watching TV. Syusuke looked up and smiled at him. "Hello, Yuuta. Would you like to join me?" The show looked like a kiddy cartoon, only with a bunch of freaky puppets and… chainsaws? High-pitched screams and evil chuckles could be heard along with strange buzzing noises in the background.

Yuuta swallowed his immediate refusal (was that a _vampire_ puppet just now?) and forced a smile, "Sure Aniki." This was for the team, he reminded himself. He would do it for his team and Mizuki. And possibly for his brother's safety. He cleared his throat, "So… what are your plans for the weekend?" Tennis practice? Shopping? Hiking? Possibly a battle with other schools at the mall?

Syusuke continued watching as he replied, "Oh, nothing much. You?"

A white cat puppet that strangely resembled Hello Kitty was holding a butcher knife while singing with the vampire puppet's bats. "A-ah, same." _'Now's my chance.'_ "Actually, I was wondering if—"

The shrill tune of a theme song (was that the _puppet_ show theme?) made Syusuke reach for his pocket. He blinked in surprise as he answered, "Hello, Sakuno-chan."

Yuuta was pulled out of his horrified questioning of the ringtone and blinked. _Sakuno__chan__Ryuzaki_ Why was she calling so late in the evening? Could it possibly be…?

"Hm? No, of course you're not bothering me. It's fine, I finished eating dinner. A favor? Ah…"

If only he could hear what the girl was saying, Yuuta thought miserably as his brother listened in silence.

"I see. With Tomoka-chan and An-san as well? In that case, I'll be happy to accompany you." Syusuke didn't seem to notice his brother nearly fall off the sofa. "Okay. Tomorrow at the mall… in front of the flower shop? Then I'll pick you up at ten-thirty. Oh, it's no trouble at all. I didn't have any plans anyways… Goodnight. I'll see you tomorrow, Sakuno-chan." The smiling tensai hung up, and then returned to watching the television show.

After a minute he turned to look at Yuuta curiously, "Yuuta? Is anything wrong? You look a little pale." The speechless boy stood up woodenly without looking at his brother. "Yuuta?"

"I'm okay. Nothing's wrong. I just…" he turned and gave his brother a strained smile. "I need to use the bathroom, that's all."

He hurried out of the room with the sounds of bloody screams and cackles ringing in his ears. Syusuke looked concernedly after him and then shrugged, going back to the show.

* * *

**End Part 4**

* * *

**A/N: ...I love the Fuji bros. But I kinda respect the sister even more. Ha. **

**That was another set of random encounters. And I felt so undeniably awkward writing about ****Rikkai**** Dai players (still do). ****Niou**** and ****Yukimura**** are by far the most hard-to-write-about-comfortably characters. ****For me, at least.**** Oh well. **

**And up next is finally… The Battle! ****Da ****da ****daaah!**

**Thank you so much for taking time to read!**

* * *


	5. Part 5: Akisa

**

* * *

**

Part 5: _Akisa _(Tachibana An's Army. Manhunt Date. Atobe's Prowess)

* * *

Why was she here again?

Instead of the original plan of sleeping all day with the blankets and pillows pulled over her head, the next morning Tomoka found herself in the mall standing before the flower shop. Even though the mall had just opened, there were already quite a few people coming in and out of the stores.

She yawned and stared at the display window grumpily, wondering yet again why she was here bright and early in the morning instead of dreaming about a certain guy and pretending yesterday's crazy events did not happen. She _did_ kind of leave Niou on the ground after dishing him that (pretty darn amazing) knock-out punch. It had been hard to convince herself that he was fine, and she'd tossed and turned for about half the night.

Her mind went back to last night's conversation on the phone with Sakuno, reminded of why she was here in the first place.

_"Sakuno?__ What's up?" _

_"Tomo-chan, will you come with me to the mall tomorrow morning?" _

_"Uh, s__ure.__ Why?" _

_"W__ell… __um, __it's a very long and boring story…" _

After hearing the girl's long and boring story, Tomoka wondered if it was possible for a single girl to attract so many accidents and misfortunes in a week and yet still live a healthy life. She told Sakuno not to worry, that she would come if only to ease Ryuzaki-sensei's fears that the girl would be kidnapped at the mall, and promptly went to sleep. Though goodness knew how well that went.

And so here she was. At the mall. In front of the flower shop. Again.

"Tomo-chan!"

She turned and smiled at Sakuno, An, and… "Fuji-senpai?"

The closed-eyed boy merely waved in greeting, "Good morning, Tomoka-chan. I'm going to be your bodyguard today." As per certain scary coach and grandmother. "You look cute today as well."

"Looks like we have a new addition to the SSS Brigade, eh Tomoka?" An winked at her. Tomoka just grinned. "Anyways, what do you all want to do first?"

Syusuke looked at the flower shop with interest. "I heard that the new flower shop was very popular, but I never had the chance to check it out."

An nodded resolutely, "All right! Let's go in there first. We'll even introduce you to Risai."

"Risai? Is that the owner?"

Sakuno bit her lip and glanced at her silent friend. "Tomo-chan, do you need to go anywhere else? Maybe the restroom?"

After a pause Tomoka looked up with a smile, "No, the flower shop is fine. Let's go say hi to Risai."

Syusuke looked confused. "Is Risai-san a friend of yours?"

An was already leading him inside. "She's an acquaintance. And it's Risai, not Risai-san." They all trooped inside the calm shop amidst the tinkling of the chimes and the fragrant breeze. An stopped and looked around, blinking. "Huh. Nobody's here."

"If you're looking for Risai, she'll be back in an hour." They turned and saw a middle-age man wearing a worker's apron from the clock shop next door. "The owner's gone today for a meeting and Risai usually does another part-time job at this time. She asked that any customers please feel free to look at the flowers, or if you're in a hurry, to come back a little later."

"Okay, thank you," Syusuke said.

The man nodded pleasantly. "She comes back around twelve, so if you'd like to wait or come back then, that's fine." He began to walk out, waving a hand. "If you need any help, don't hesitate to pop in next door. I can probably put together a bouquet or two." They laughed and thanked him as he left.

An looked at everyone, "So, what should we do?" Tomoka and Sakuno looked at each other and shrugged.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to take a look around," Syusuke said calmly, but Sakuno thought he was rather eager if his blue eyes were any indication. He'd spotted a small row of cacti at the other end.

"We don't mind," Tomoka answered as she stretched. "I'll just go and sleep on that couch over there, so please excuse me." They watched as she yawned and shuffled to the couch, falling down on it.

An looked at Sakuno and said, "I wanted to give my mom a plant for her birthday."

Sakuno smiled, "I'll help you look for one."

There was a deep sigh. Tomoka was already fast asleep.

* * *

It was another slow day at the store, as usual. This didn't faze Sarisa as she waved goodbye to her great-aunt and walked towards the bus stop. Nanako felt a little worried as she glanced back.

"Are you sure it's okay to leave her, Risa-chan?"

Sarisa only smiled. "It's fine. The store is only set up as a hobby, so it's not like we need the money. Besides, this is my little sister's first date! _Nothing_ will keep me from going." She hummed happily.

Nanako shook her head smilingly at her friend. "You're lucky Akisa-chan doesn't care that her sister spies on her dates. And besides, you wanted to see Risai-chan's flower shop, remember?"

"And _you_ are meeting your cousin. Ryoma-san, right?" Sarisa mused thoughtfully. "I wonder what kind of guy—What was that?" She suddenly grabbed her friend's arm, stopping.

The blue-haired girl startled. "What, Risa-chan?"

"Didn't you hear that? It was—There it goes again!" She whirled around, and blinked when she saw nothing. Nanako was staring at her, bewildered. "Never mind. I'm sorry, I guess I'm being para—Ah!" A red thing popped out right in front of her.

"Koshimae's cousin, Koshimae's cousin!" sang the familiar leaping redhead. He stopped and grinned widely at the shocked girls. "I went to your store but you weren't there! The nice obaa-chan told me you were this way, so I ran as fast as I could!" Then he grabbed Nanako's hands and begged eagerly, "Where can I meet Koshimae? Please tell me! I want to play tennis with him!"

Nanako exchanged looks with Sarisa before replying, "Ryoma-san? Well, I'm meeting him at the Central Mall right now—" She was talking to thin air as he dashed off.

"Thank you very much, Koshimae's cousin…!"

They blinked after him, already a small dot in the horizon. "That… was interesting," Sarisa finally remarked, but Nanako was looking down at the ground where a cell phone was lying. She picked it up slowly, and nearly dropped it when it suddenly vibrated.

" 'Shi-chan'?" read Sarisa over her friend's shoulder. She blinked, "Could that be…?"

Nanako hesitated before answering, "… Hello?"

There was a pause. _"Excuse __me,__ is this __T__oyama Kintarou's phone?"_

She recognized his voice and smiled, "Yes. This is Meino Nanako. We met at the store a few days ago, when you were with Ryuzaki Sakuno-chan. Is it… Shiraishi-san?"

_"Yes."_ Though his voice indicated that he wished he was anyone but at the moment. _"I'm sorry to have reached you like this. Has Kin-chan caused you much trouble?" _

She laughed a little weakly, "Um, his visit was certainly unexpected." At her side, Sarisa gave an uncharacteristic snort.

As if hearing her, Shiraishi's tone became wry. "_I apologize for my teammate'__s unexpected visit. Do you know where he is? Or where I can find him?" _She heard a disgruntled voice in the background correct, _"Where __**we**__ can find __that monkey__ you mean—o__w!_

Nanako suddenly remembered, "Oh, we're late!" She clamped her mouth, mentally berating herself for blurting out something so thoughtlessly. "No, I mean, um, Kintarou-san said he wanted to meet Ryoma-san, and since I was about to meet with him, I said that Ryoma-san was at the Central Mall…"

_"Central Mall?"_ A deeper voice chimed in smoothly, and she wondered just how many people "we" was. _"That's at least thirty minutes away, Shiraishi." _

"Tell them to meet us at the bus stop," Sarisa suddenly proposed, glancing at her watch. "I told Akisa we would be there in forty minutes."

Apparently he heard her loud and clear for the smooth voice responded, _"That's a good plan. We can meet you at the bus station in about ten minutes__. By the way, I didn't catch your name-"_ Nanako heard a rustling sound and Shiraishi's voice telling him this was not a group date but a manhunt before he asked politely, _"Meino-san? Is it all right if we could possibly accompany you?"_ A sigh._ "Wherever Echizen Ryoma is, Kintarou is bound to follow." _

After glancing at Sarisa, she assured him, "Yes, of course. It was partly my fault as it is. We'll meet you at the bus station in ten minutes."

Instead of a reply, there was rustling and static noise before a new voice asked, _"Meino-san? You sound very mature. How old are—" "Stop flirting __senpai."_ And then there were obvious sounds of scuffling before a new voice teased, _"Hikaru-chan is very excited to see you!"_ and a vehement Hikaru interjecting, _"No, I'm not!"_ _"Don't hide your feelings!" "How many girls are—" "Turn it _off!"

There was a click as the phone went dead.

Nanako stared at it for a bit before smiling faintly at Sarisa.

"It's a date."

* * *

One could almost ignore and overlook the bizarre group if they tried—keyword being "almost." However, even the most indifferent of people in the mall stared—_gawked_—at the gang of high school boys dressed and ready for combat. It was like cosplay... only, to a higher degree.

The group trooped in single file, shortest to tallest, wearing grim expressions. They marched perfectly on tempo with a loud voice that called out, "Left! Left! Left right left!" When they neared the fountain, the voice barked, "Halt!"

They waited in rigid silence, not even moving a muscle.

Until a familiar, loud voice whined, "Momo-chan senpai, this backpack is killing me! Can't we take a break?"

"Silence in the ranks!" A boy wearing an army hat with branches on top glared at the insolent speaker. "And don't call me that. My name is Code Dunk. Do you hear me, Cadet Five Years?"

Cadet Five Years gulped. "Sir! Yes, sir!"

Behind him a boy whispered to his friend, "Calling him Five Years of Tennis Experience was too long, but Five Years still sounds tacky."

"Cadet K Number 1! Cadet K Number 2!"

They stiffened to attention as Mo—no, _Code Dunk_ pounced on them. "Sir! Yes, sir!" they cried. When he turned away, Cadet K Number 2 muttered, "Ours are _tackier_."

A boy with an eye patch over his visible eye ordered, "Everyone, listen to your positions! Cadets go first and scout the area for the targets. Remember, report all suspicious activity to Code Dunk and me."

"Sir yes sir!"

"Privates, station yourselves around the shop at angles 1, 2, 3, and 4. Two of you will go to the second floor for angles 2 and 4. Got it?"

"Yes sir!"

"Agent Talk-a-Lot, select the best spot on the second floor and set up your equipment to commence spying and sniping. If you see our intended targets, attack on sight."

No answer.

"Agent Talk-a-Lot?"

"...Why am I called Talk-a-Lot? Does that mean I talk a lot? I do not talk a lot at all. Well, maybe I do a little bit. But is that supposed to imply something? Are you saying I drone on and on? I don't appreciate being made fun of, you know. I wanted to be called Agent Know-it-All… but then, that would have implied that I'm arrogant, wouldn't it? If I'd been named—"

Since they didn't have much time, Code Dunk cut in hastily, "What about us, Code Rhythm?"

Code Rhythm contemplated before stating, "We go directly into the battlefield, Code Dunk. It is our duty and responsibility as the leaders to put our lives at risk and fight. No, there is no need to weep." Cadet Five Years burst into manly tears. "It is our honor and duty to protect innocent girls from evil manipulators!"

"Here, here," nodded the Privates. They all liked An like a sister, and were fiercely protective of her. No mercy to anyone who dared touch her without their approval. Agent Talk-a-Lot was still mumbling to himself about registering for the next war with a different name.

Code Dunk nodded. "No longer will unsuspecting girls fall prey to players like Sengoku Kiyosumi!"

"Sir yes sir!"

"Today is the day that evildoers and dirty perverts will subside! A new era of shining hope and purity will rise! Let us march forth with courage and determinism! We are now men! We will succeed or _die trying_!"

"Sir yes SIR!"

"FOR TACHIBANA AN!"

"RAAAGH!"

After the group ran off dispersing with various battle cries and successfully freaked out the customers, Code Rhythm paused and looked at Code Dunk.

"Momoshiro?"

"What, Kamio?"

"Take off your hat. You look ridiculous."

"Speak for yourself, Cap'n Eyepatch."

* * *

"Um, Sir?"

No answer.

"Sir?"

No answer.

"Sir? This is a public place. You can't just stand here."

No answer. Then, a skinny, trembling hand held out to him. The clerk blinked at the offered yen and said flatly, "No sir, I don't want your money. Please, can you step out of the doorway? Customers are trying to get through."

The old, bald man with a flowing beard just smiled and nodded creakily.

* * *

"Did you see that?"

"Oh my gosh—it's a limo!"

"Are they filming a movie?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if Atobe Keigo _himself_ stepped out."

A pause. Then…

"KYAAH! ATOBE-SAMA!"

The Hyotei tennis captain stepped out onto the sidewalk, ignoring the stares he received as he stared coolly at the mall. It was a big building with decent architecture and spacious doors, but to him it was no greater than his second biggest summer house. However, this was the battle place Tezuka chose so it would have to suffice. Of course, that didn't stop him from smirking and snapping his fingers for his butler to take off his sunglasses and his extremely expensive jacket, showing everyone Atobe Keigo was not just any ordinary shopper today.

"_This_ is the mall?" Gakuto said incredulously, stepping out of the limo with the rest of the Hyotei team. Yuushi stood beside him, looking up at the building with some surprise on his face.

"It's quite small, isn't it?"

Even Shishido and Choutarou were taken aback. "Maybe this isn't the main entrance?" Choutarou suggested uncertainly.

Hiyoshi frowned slightly. "I think I remember my grandparents saying this place was a second-hand building." (That's second generation, Hiyoshi)

Gakuto made a scornful noise. "No wonder it's so old-looking."

"It might be on purpose," Yuushi commented thoughtfully. "The design, I mean."

Eager to defend the poor-looking mall that ordinary people occupied, Choutarou hurriedly agreed, "Yeah, I can kind of see it. Um, perhaps it isn't so rundown inside?" Shishido mumbled something like "I doubt it."

Atobe was finished posing and smirking for the fans that had gathered around the sidewalk and demanded, "Is everyone ready? Kabaji?"

The giant lumbered out of the limo, carrying a sleeping Jirou over his shoulder. "Ossu."

"Now let us make Ore-sama's presence known at once!"

* * *

Other than the occasional snicker or two (twenty in Kirihara's case) the trip had been relatively peaceful, and for Yukimura, that was enough. However, Sanada found it necessary to bark at his teammates whenever they complained or disturbed the passengers around them. He ignored Kirihara's snickers because at this point it was too late to shut him up, and, in the deepest recesses of his mind, Sanada didn't mind at all.

Mind, body and soul, he believed that whatever punishment Niou received was richly and well deserved.

The infamous and renowned trickster of Rikkai Dai, the so-called terror of all girls who valued their dignity, the scary persecutor that every guy was wary of… had apparently been knocked down by a girl a foot shorter than him.

It was worth every single one of Kirihara's snickers, Sanada thought. If he wasn't so unhappy that the girl had done the one thing he should have done since middle school, he would personally commend her. Seeing as he was Sanada Genichirou, he probably wouldn't have anyways. Unless, of course, she gave Niou another bruise on his eyes to match the one on his jaw. Now _that_ would be praiseworthy.

Glowering heavily so that even his doubles partner didn't dare approach him (Yagyuu highly doubted his smirk would be appreciated) Niou probed at his swollen, marred jaw, wincing. He was pissed off at the girl, he was pissed off at himself, his teammates, his sister, the people sitting across from him for staring, those kids who wouldn't stop pointing, the annoying person on the radio, the whole world—everything. But mostly he was pissed off at Kirihara for snickering.

"Keheh! I can't believe… pwahah! A girl knocked out THE trickster…!"

After unwillingly describing the girl to Yukimura, the captain said that she was one of the reasons they were going to the mall. Renji got a call from his old friend warning him about a battle that would take place in front of the flower shop. Apparently, Seigaku and Hyotei would be there planning a secret alliance, and since Rikkai Dai could not let such acts go unchecked, they would go as well.

Niou, frankly, could care less. All he knew was that the girl would be there, and he could return the favor she'd bestowed the other day in the full.

Very grudgingly, though, in the deepest, darkest recesses of _his _mind, he had to admire the girl for achieving what no one (besides maybe Yukimura) had done. Her punch had hurt like hell. It certainly caught his attention.

And he was glad, because it made payback all the more sweet.

* * *

Throughout the first floor of the mall, the sweet melody of a piano swept like a breeze into people's ears, filling their hearts with calm. It was both pleasant and calming, and harmonized with the sunny mood.

"I didn't know you played piano."

Risai glanced up and smiled. "Ah, Takahisa. You're early."

If he cared what she called him anymore, he didn't bother showing it. Instead he asked, "Do you get paid for this as well?" He indicated at her formal attire and the piano.

She shrugged, "Of course I am. Why else would I do it? Besides, it's my easier part-time job." She bent over and grabbed something from under her seat. It was a bouquet of wild honeysuckle, clusters of stephanotis, and gardenia. "The colors don't really match on purpose," she said, handing it to him.

He took it carefully. He wasn't very knowledgeable about flowers, but even he knew the fragrance was very strong, and he looked at her. "Is the scent meant to make up for the lack of colors?"

Risai tapped the piano keys and said primly, "You asked me to take care of it, Takahisa. That's what she likes—flowers with fragrance."

He bowed slightly. "You're right. Thank you for your help."

She waved a hand, grinning. "So? You want me to play a romantic song when she comes or what?"

The normally unfazed tennis captain looked away with a tint of red on his face. "That is unnecessary. She—" He suddenly stopped and stared.

She glanced back but didn't see anything unusual. "What's the matter? Is she here?"

He looked like he just swallowed something bad as he muttered, "What is _he_ doing here?" The way 'he' was stressed Risai guessed 'he' wasn't very welcome.

"Who?" She was about to glance back but he stopped her. She teased, "He must be very important for you to care so much."

Kajimoto was not amused. "Atobe Keigo is not any of my concern. However, he is from a rivaling tennis team, and if he of all people get the wrong notion…"

"Is he really that bad?"

His voice was dry. "Trust me. His personality is probably more than even you can handle." Then he stiffened. "He's coming this way."

Risai had no idea how bad this Atobe guy was, but from Kajimoto's reaction she assumed it was pretty awful. She made up her mind and pushed him away. "Go to the flower shop and tell Akisa to meet you there instead." At his look she added, "Don't worry. I'll try to distract him. Maybe. Just go."

He didn't bother to protest. With a nod of thanks, he hurried away.

* * *

"Um, excuse me sir?"

No answer.

"Er, you can go in, sir. This is a public place."

The old man quivered and looked up at the janitor with a questioning expression, pointing at the sign. The janitor nodded patiently.

"Yes, sir, you can use the men's restroom."

* * *

It was the familiar sound of black and ivory keys that caught his attention. He hadn't practiced in a while, what with school and tennis, but he always appreciated the piano. And he could tell this person was an exceptionally talented player.

Atobe was intrigued as well, but in a different way than Choutarou. "How amazing! They even hire a pianist in a place like this! Ore-sama is impressed." And then, before anyone could comment, he decided, "We shall go and bless the musician with Ore-sama's presence!" Nobody could point out that he had a meeting with his greatest rival to go to, since he was already striding away.

It was a decent grand piano. Choutarou saw the side profile of the pianist and was surprised at how young she was. She had long brown hair tied in a low ponytail and wore black formal attire that made her look professional. Unsurprisingly, she was playing without any music sheets. She looked down as she played, either not noticing or ignoring them. That wouldn't last for long, Choutarou knew, not with Atobe Keigo making a beeline for her.

The Hyotei team watched as the familiar smirk graced their captain's face. He stepped closer and remarked, "Ore-sama commends you, for your musical talents have caught his attention."

She kept playing, as if she hadn't heard him. Choutarou wondered if she even knew who she was ignoring. Gakuto's lips twitched and his hand flew to stop it.

Of course, this didn't stop Atobe, whose oversized ego naturally assumed she must not have heard him. He spoke a little louder, "You are so absorbed in your music that you did not hear Ore-sama's praise. Ore-sama is impressed by your dedication and hard work."

She ignored him. Atobe actually blinked in a rare sign of surprise. There was a muffled laughter, but when Atobe turned his head to glare everybody's expressions were carefully blank. He decided to try again, since the girl was clearly _very_ absorbed in her music.

"While Ore-sama is impressed by your devotion to the piano, Ore-sama would like to see the face of the person whose talents have deserved Ore-sama's attention." His tone was impatient.

She stopped playing, and without even looking up, said flatly, "Thank you. But my face is not worthy of Ore-sama's attention."

There was a pause, before the entire Hyotei team, except for Kabaji and Jirou, finally burst out laughing. Gakuto clutched Kabaji's arm for balance as he gasped, "That was rich! She's so good!" Even Choutarou couldn't resist a few chuckles, but he still worried for her fate.

At first, Atobe was shocked. After all, it wasn't often that a girl refused his request, no matter how subtly. Then he quickly recovered and the smirk was back full blast as he stated shrewdly, "Ore-sama understands if you are so awed by Ore-sama's magnificent presence that you are too afraid to lift your face. Females tend to do that when within the radiance of his dimension. It is perfectly acceptable that you, too, are not an exception."

Her eyes flickered and she glanced at him. It was only an instant, but Choutarou was able to get a good look at her face and something struck a chord in his memory. It wasn't that long ago, and in fact … He straightened.

"Hanata Risai-san!" Everyone turned their heads, and she flinched. He continued in a surprised voice, "You were the first place winner at the Tokyo national piano contest last month. You probably don't remember me, but I was second place—Ohtori Choutarou. I never knew you played piano here."

There was something niggling in Shishido's mind as well. Ignoring the startled looks he received, he strode past the captain. With a hand propped on the piano he bent down and placed his face close to hers, staring at her intently. His eyes narrowed in realization as he accused, "You're the one who played me in billiards."

There was a shocked pause before Gakuto shoved forward and peered closely at her as well. He exclaimed, "Oi, he's right! She's the girl who trounced him!" Then, his face darkened and he added, "_You're_ the reason I got two black eyes."

Atobe scowled regally at them for interrupting him. "Ore-sama was not finished. But, he must be on his way. Come, Kabaji."

"Ossu."

Risai shifted uncomfortably, not looking at the two glaring faces as she replied, "I'm afraid I don't remember you two at all. Choutarou, it's nice to see you again."

The tall boy blinked in surprise. "A-ah, nice to see you again." Everybody else was thinking the same as him. _'First-name basis?'_

Hyotei's Dash Specialist was not pleased. He practically snarled, "Shishido Ryou. Last Saturday. Festival. _Billiards_."

"You thrashed him in an eighty minute game," Gakuto supplied helpfully, completely ignoring the dark glare.

Suddenly, she took out a vibrating phone from her pocket. Without much ado she answered, "Hello? Ah, yes, I left the shop o—what?" Her face paled. "Yes, I knew that, but why today?" She slid out of the piano seat, slowly walking away. "But… okay. I understand. I'll do my best… Goodbye."

Ever the concerned one, Choutarou ventured to ask, "Is everything all right, Hanata-san?"

She suddenly whirled on him, and everyone was startled by the desperate expression on her face as she begged, "Choutarou-_san_, will you play for me until I come back? Please. I'll pay you back."

He could tell she was dead serious. And since he was already a soft-hearted guy who could not withstand begging expressions, he relented, "Okay, I'll do it."

There were surprised exclamations of "Choutarou!" and "Oi, get back here!"

But she was already running and gone.

* * *

He normally didn't come to public places like these, especially on a Saturday morning when he could go play tennis or, even better, sleep in for a couple hours or so. Heck, he rarely came here at all. It was too noisy and crowded and just amounted to a big, troublesome headache.

But something Inui said about the mall, a flower shop, and Ryuzaki Sakuno had prompted him to agree when Nanako asked if he would accompany her on Saturday morning.

...It wasn't like that was the only reason. Of course not. He simply just _chose_ to come to the mall on his own accord.

"Sir, would you like to try out our new sweet almond fudge sample?"

Ryoma looked at the box of appetizing chocolates, shrugged, and took one. Oh well, as long as he was here, he might as well enjoy himself. That was when he saw it. At first he wondered if he was imagining things, but when he looked at the reflection in the window, he saw three familiar boys wearing sunglasses and holding walkie-talkies, stalking him.

_'Are they serious?' _

He continued walking to the flower shop where his cousin said they would meet, and kept seeing very familiar people. He even saw a bald old man with a white beard. A glint of light caught his attention and he swore he saw Shinji on the second floor balcony staring down at him through binoculars.

_'They're serious.'_

It was getting annoying when, as he walked, a very irritating voice kept hissing within his hearing, "Target is within your territory, Code Dunk!" or "Private Bandana, he's passing your jurisdiction!" At least the code names were slightly amusing.

When he reached the flower shop, he saw two guys sitting on a bench, reading newspapers. They were wearing sunglasses and hats, and had gray mustaches that completely contrasted their gray-less hair. As he walked toward them the hiss became urgent, "Codes Dunk and Rhythm! The target is in the red area! Repeat, _danger_! Target is—"

"Momo-senpai?"

A grunt. "Eh boy? Who's that? Speak up!"

"...Momo-senpai. Your mustache fell off."

"Ahaha! It does that sometimes. Don't worry, it grows back like lightning—see?"

"... Mada mada dane, Momo-senpai. Kamio-san."

"Damn."

* * *

There was a short pause as they all looked at the mile-long limousine. Then, Yukimura announced calmly, "Atobe is already here." There was an unimpressed grunt from Sanada.

Marui snorted. "The king couldn't take the bus, huh?" Jackal looked on silently in disapproval.

Kirihara was trying to peer through the windows, but pulled back hastily when Renji stated, "His bodyguards are inside." Yagyuu adjusted his glasses in interest.

Near the back of the group Niou bit back a dour comment, wishing they would just hurry and go inside.

* * *

Momoshiro couldn't help frowning worriedly at the shop they were supposed to be observing. He murmured under his breath, "Are you sure she's in there?"

"That's what the cadets reported," Kamio whispered back, glancing at the 'closed' sign. "The lights are still on, so they must be in there."

"Who do you think that other girl was?"

"The one who came running like she was late for a concert? How would I know?"

"She seems to be a worker at the flower shop," Inui commented from between them. Momoshiro and Kamio nodded thoughtfully, then, blinked and jolted away from the third year, pointing at him.

"I-Inui-senpai! What are you doing here?"

The data man was busy scribbling in his notebook as he answered, "Gathering data. What else, Momoshiro?"

Kamio was blinking hard with his visible eye, when suddenly a hand fell on his shoulder. "Gah!" He twisted and saw Seigaku's Golden Pair smiling at him. "Eiji-san? Oishi-san?" Exchanging glances with Momoshiro, he uttered, "Why are you here?"

Eiji sighed and pointed at his doubles partner, "Nya, I told him not to go, but he still wanted to follow Inui."

"But Inui said there would be a battle!" Oishi protested. He did a double take and said slowly, "Why are you guys wearing mustaches?" When they hesitated he hastily said, "Never mind. Just tell me one thing: Is there going to be a battle?"

There was a static sound and a familiar voice saying urgently, "Code Dunk! Code Dunk! This is Cadet Five Years!" Momoshiro hurriedly took out his walkie-talkie and spoke into it.

"Cadet Five Years, what is it?"

"There is an intruder! Er, intruders! They're coming your way!"

"What kind of intruders?" Kamio demanded. Inui's glasses flashed in interest.

"Uh, it looks like six high school boys—no, seven! One's sleeping on top of the giant… or is that a hunchback—" There was more static and some scuffling sounds.

Then new voice said, "Code Dunk? This is Cadet K Number 1. The intruders are actually the Hyotei tennis team, sir!"

Oishi and Eiji were taken aback. Inui pushed up his glasses, saying knowingly, "The battle is about to begin."

Kamio was confused, "But why is Hyotei here? We're not fighting them." Momoshiro, on the other hand, frowned hard.

He asked, "Is Atobe Keigo with them?"

There was a pause. "Yes sir! He's leading in the very front."

Flames lit up in Momoshiro's eyes. "Release fire."

"Yes sir!"

"Momoshiro!" The rhythm tennis player stared at him as if he'd just ordered everyone to put down their weapons and drink tea with Hyotei.

But the Dunk Smash player remained unmoved. "Code Rhythm, don't you remember when a certain pompous captain tried to force Tachibana An to go on a date with him?" Seeing realization dawn on his face, Momoshiro nodded. "Atobe Keigo is also a lascivious threat that needs to be taken down today!"

"Lascivious threat?" Eiji muttered to Oishi. "They're joking, right?"

Inui was mumbling under his breath, extremely happy that everything was going according to his predictions.

* * *

It started when Yuushi felt something very tiny, yet very hard hit his arm.

Then, before he even had a chance to register the sting, another tiny object bounced off the rim of his glasses. He was able to identify the thing as a wad of paper—a perfect spit wad. He wasn't the only one being targeted apparently when the rest of his teammates began to jerk around in surprise.

Then, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye—a head disappeared from the second floor balcony. _'That almost looked like __Ibu__ Shinji.'_ But why was Fudomine here? Wasn't it just a battle with Seigaku? His questions stopped after a particularly big spit wad nailed him in the forehead.

"What the—?" Gakuto spluttered, trying to fend off the unseen missiles with his arms, but failing. Shishido was cursing and trying to protect himself as well, with similar success.

"They're using guerrilla tactics," Hiyoshi growled as he dodged a wad skillfully. He was in a defensive position, eyes narrowed in concentration. "Cowards!"

"Kabaji, to the left."

"Ossu."

Atobe seemed to be the only one unhurt, as he ordered Kabaji to block the arsenal with his iron wall body, along with Jirou's sleeping body. The captain used his superb insight to direct his faithful assistant in the direction of the wads. "Hmph. Tezuka certainly doesn't want to waste time. As expected of Ore-sama's greatest rival. Kabaji, front!"

The boy moved dutifully, but a stray wad came whizzing from the right, straight towards Atobe's face. With quick reflexes, the captain caught it in his hand without even looking. He stared down at the so-called missile disdainfully and sneered, "This is nothing. Ore-sama will have to show them the power of a true battler. Gakuto, Shishido! Go and buy the materials you used during the graduation prank." His eyes narrowed. "Ore-sama gives full permission to bring out the forbidden weapons."

Despite the painful hail of paper, the two grinned like naughty boys that were just given permission to wreck unholy havoc in the world (which, basically, they were). Gakuto's eyes were gleaming as he asked hopefully, "Even the non-washable goo?"

Atobe waved a hand, "Yes, yes, now hurry!" Exchanging smirks, the two swiftly went to the nearest store. "Now, the rest of you, follow Ore-sama! We will show Tezuka and his followers the power of Atobe Keigo, and he will be awed by the sight of Ore-sama's retribution!"

As they scurried for cover, Yuushi couldn't help but smirk. Only Atobe could pull off a desperate retreat so pompously.

* * *

**End Part 5**

* * *

A/N: There you go... the fifth part! Sorry for the long wait. Hopefully nobody was actually _waiting_ for this chapter to appear... XD

The battle has finally officially started! I seriously have no idea how it's all going to work out without the police getting involved, but there's always Atobe and his all-powerful influence to fall back on. Heh. Personally, I think the sequence of events is growing more and more sci-fi. Sooner or later, the boys will be pulling out their hidden powers and blowing up the mall to bits and pieces… ah, but that's much, much later on. Perhaps.

If you look up Central Mall, Japan, you probably won't get anything. Because I made it up. So it does not exist. I think. XB

Did you spot any stupid or awkward mistakes? You bet you did. I'm sorry for any OOCness as well. Sorry!

Thank you very much for taking time to read. I hope it was worth your while!

* * *


	6. Part 6: Sarisa

* * *

**Part 6: _Sarisa_ (.x.****How to Clean a S****hirt.x.****The Art of Spying.x.****Of Love & War.x.)**

* * *

"An-chan? What's wrong?" Sakuno asked the older girl worriedly.

An turned from peering out the window and smiled, "It's nothing, Sakuno. I'm just wondering why Momoshiro-kun and Kamio-kun are sitting out there." Her voice turned dry as she commented, "They seem to think that by wearing shades and mustaches, nobody will recognize them."

"E-eh?"

"Is everything okay?" Risai said from behind them, busily wiping pots and vases. She had dressed out of her formal attire into more comfortable working clothes and her apron.

An shook her head with a smile and asked, "Is there anything else we can help with? What exactly will the sponsor look for anyways?" When the normally calm third year girl had breezed into the shop with a hassled expression and begged them for their help, they couldn't help but agree.

While Sakuno, Syusuke and Kajimoto sympathized, An wondered at how quickly Risai had changed from a klutzy, ever-smiling girl to this focused and efficient woman. Had the worker purposely put on a ditzy façade, in order to hide her true, aggressive personality? An was wary yet slightly impressed.

The worker shrugged, replacing a pot with another plant. "I'm not even sure when they'll be here. But since this is the first time they're visiting, everything should be in perfect order." Her voice was uncharacteristically strained and there was a crease between her brows. "I understand why they want to make sure their money isn't wasted, but they could have warned us ahead of time…"

Sakuno's tender heart pitied the stressed girl, seeing as she had to take responsibility of the shop by herself. It was lucky indeed that Risai had five helpers willing to lend her a hand. Well, four, since Tomoka was still sleeping soundly on the sofa. Syusuke had suggested they let her sleep, since she looked like she needed it.

"Risai, where should we put this…?" Syusuke and Kajimoto were carrying a large potted tree to the corner so it could cover up the tiny peeling paint on the wall.

Risai quickly pointed, "Ah, over there please. Yes, that's perfect. Thank you so much." She smiled at the two boys, and then blinked in dismay. "Takahisa, your clothes are getting dirty!" Everyone turned to look at the Jyosei Shonan captain and indeed, his dress shirt was soiled from the dusting and moving.

"Oh." He looked down at his shirt and said, "It's fine. I can probably wash it off."

Syusuke frowned slightly. "Is it cotton or polyester? If it's either then you can use cold water." At everyone's look of surprise, he smiled and explained, "I have many clothes like that, and I usually have to wash them myself." His sister wasn't very good at washing delicate items, as he and his brother learned long ago, but he didn't say that.

"U-um, but make sure not to use hand soap," Sakuno advised in a shy but sure tone. "I learned from experience that it can be very bad for the cotton material later on."

Wanting to share her own two cents, An chimed, "And be careful not to wrinkle it when it dries! I accidentally did that with my brother's shirts." Not that she felt extremely remorseful about it, but since this was for a person outside her family, she thought it might be useful.

Risai laughed at the expression on Kajimoto's face. "You can use the back room if you want. We have some detergent and an ironer."

Nodding, he said, "Thank you, everyone." He went toward the back room.

"Is the detergent non-bleach, Risai?" Syusuke asked. The girl frowned as she slowly shook her head.

"No, well… I'm not too sure. I'll go check." She followed Kajimoto, and with a faint shrug, Syusuke followed as well. An and Sakuno could hear their voices through the open door.

"Well," said An, walking over to the couch, "Tomoka's still asleep. I guess we'll wait here a little." She placed the small plant she had purchased for her mother on the coffee table.

Sakuno nodded smilingly, sitting on the chair across from her slumbering friend. "I don't mind. I really like this shop. It's so…"

"Peaceful," An nodded, and then she stretched her hands and yawned, "Man, I feel sleepy all of a sudden. Maybe it's _too_ peaceful," she joked. Sakuno giggled and watched as the older girl slowly closed her eyes. Soon, both her friends were in dreamland.

The young Ryuzaki stifled a yawn as she, too, felt the drowsiness come over her. She figured it must have been from all the cleaning and activity. Besides, she had been exhausted from the events of this week. Deciding that a short nap wouldn't hurt (apparently her earlier misadventures hadn't taught her anything), her eyelids steadily fell and she surrendered herself to the welcoming blackness.

* * *

"Hey, hey, do you know where Koshimae is?"

No answer.

"Hello? Ojii-chan! Where can I find Koshimae?"

Slowly, the old face craned up to look at the wide grinning redhead. He lifted a trembling finger and then pointed at the boy's hair. "…Why is it red?"

Kintarou blinked in surprise. "Ojii-chan, that wasn't my question! Do you know where Koshimae is?"

After an eternity in which the bearded man contemplated silently, he finally nodded shakily.

"You do?" The boy let out a whoop and jumped. "You're the best, Ojii-chan! Where? Where's Koshimae?"

With a smile and a quavering grunt, the old man slowly began walking.

* * *

"It's this way, desu!" Dan called, waving back urgently at the orange-haired third year. "Sengoku-senpai! Hurry up and stop flirting, desu! The battle might have started without us, desu!"

Sengoku waved happily at a couple of high school girls before following the impatient boy. "Huh? The battle won't start until _we're_ there, Taichi. Don't worry about it. Besides," he turned and winked at a girl walked by, making her giggle. "Isn't flirting the whole point of the battle?"

Dan slapped his forehead, groaning. Somehow, his senpai had twisted his words and thought the battle between Seigaku and Yamabuki was a contest over who picked up the most girls in a day. Well, no matter. He had to bring him to the meeting place before they were too late, and that wouldn't happen if the vice captain didn't _stop every five seconds_ to speak with a girl.

"Eh? That's strange." Dan turned at his senpai's words. Sengoku was staring up at the second floor balcony, scratching his head.

"What's strange, senpai?"

Sengoku blinked and looked down at his kouhai's questioning face, and then broke into a wide grin, "Ah, it's nothing. I thought I saw a really beautiful girl up there, but… it turns out it was a man!"

Dan nearly fell over. "Sengoku-senpai," he cried, "now is not the time to look at people! You're about to _battle_, desu! It's going to be fists and bloody and everything, desu!"

The self-proclaimed lucky player ruffled the frantic boy's head, saying, "Okay, okay, let's go then." As Dan sighed in relief, Sengoku glanced up at the balcony where he'd seen the flash. _'That was no beautiful girl. In fact, I'm pretty sure that was Ibu Shinji.' _

His smirk went unnoticed by the prattling boy, and he cut in, "I'm sorry Taichi, I need to stop by somewhere really quick. Can you wait for me?" Without waiting for a reply, Sengoku ran off.

"Huh? S-Sengoku-senpai? Wait, desu! The battle…!" Dan stared after him before running as well. "Wait up, senpai!"

* * *

It was difficult trying to shoot various missiles at an enemy that was using the same hit and run tactics as you while trying to dodge yourself, and at the same time avoid hitting innocent civilians so that the security guards didn't come to investigate.

In fact, Kamio didn't know why the guards hadn't noticed the flying projectiles coming from various parts of the second and even third floor yet. Perhaps the security cameras were out of commission? (Little did he know that _someone_ was controlling them behind the scenes)

He didn't have much time to think about this as he ducked yet another heavy barrage of strange yellow balls the size of jawbreakers. He'd learned to avoid these most carefully, since upon impacting on skin they exploded into gooey substances that _did not come off_ with hot or soapy water, as he and the others quickly found out. And besides, they really hurt. He had speed that not many others could catch up with, and so he'd managed to dodge the brunt of the attacks.

Some, however, weren't as lucky.

There'd already been a casualty, a rather emotional one, when Sakurai sacrificed himself (mostly his hair) in order to protect the three freshmen from a fatal attack. Kamio clenched his jaw at the memory of a shocked Tetsu yelling for his double's partner to open his eyes. The sacrifice had strengthened their resolve to retaliate with extra force.

"Damn that Atobe," he cursed, ducking behind a pillar. The rich captain had obviously made use of his wealth and stocked up on as many weapons as possible. "Stupid Momoshiro. I _said_ we shouldn't have attacked them!"

"Code Rhythm!" He turned and saw Tetsu hissing from behind a large potted plant. "Agent Talk-a-Lot has spotted a new group heading this direction. He says it's the St. Rudolph tennis team."

"St. Rudolph?" Kamio blinked in confusion. Was this some kind of tennis team convention? Perhaps there was some kind of magnet drawing them all together…? He shook his head from this disturbing thought. St. Rudolph was not one of their targets.

But then, remembering that they were also taking down every single bastard that tried to manipulate girls, he narrowed his eyes. "Is Mizuki and Yanagisawa there?"

Tetsu nodded. "The whole team is here, sir."

"Then fire without hesitation."

"Yes sir!"

Kamio smiled grimly, reloading his BB gun before taking aim.

_'This is for An-chan!'_

* * *

People stared at them, wondering why they were cowering and covering themselves as if warding off invisible blows from an unseen foe. Some mothers gathered their children, saying, "Don't get near them. They might be crazy." Other people gave them weird looks or snickered out loud, pointing at them.

"What the hell?" St. Rudolph's manager growled out, trying to protect himself from the clear, plastic balls no larger than a tennis ball that shot rapidly at his head. Around him, his teammates were in a similar position. "What does your brother think he's doing?"

From behind him, Yuuta managed to retort, "Aniki wouldn't do something like this! Besides, he's on a date with Sakuno-chan, Tomoka-san and An-san!" Which was _still_ shocking, but with the way his brother's mind worked Yuuta didn't doubt it for an instant.

"Mizuki Hajime, you'd better have a good excuse for this." At his buchou's dark voice Mizuki swallowed. Akazawa was shielding his face from the missiles but still managed to glare down at him in a very captain-ish way. The dark-skinned captain had not wanted to come along in their little excursion, saying he had better things to do than spy on Fuji Syusuke, but with much convincing, he'd reluctantly decided to come. Needless to say, he was not very happy with the welcome they were receiving.

Kaneda glared as well, but the effect was ruined as a well-aimed ball hit him between the eyes.

Yanagisawa was yelping as the balls smacked him particularly hard, "Why are we being attacked, dane? I thought this was a battle between Seigaku and Yamabuki, dane! Ow!"

Atsushi and Nomura were near the rear of the group and didn't suffer as much, but they still had to ward off stray pellets. Holding up an arm, Atsushi caught sight of a piece of paper fluttering on the ground between them, and he picked it up. Nomura noticed and read it out loud. "'You seem to be in need of assistance. Adhere Ore-sama and under his awesome auspices—'" He broke off and looked confused. "What the heck? Who's 'Ore-sama'?"

"Buchou!" Akazawa turned and saw Atsushi holding a paper. "Should we join them?" The captain read the note with narrowed eyes, and the rest of the team gathered around him.

"Hyotei? They're here as well?" Mizuki looked shocked. He flinched as a well-aimed ball hit his eyebrow and scowled. If he came out of this with a single scar, there would be hell to pay.

Yanagisawa, however, was baffled over something else. "Is that pink stationary paper, dane?"

"It smells like perfume," Kaneda added, sniffing it.

Yuuta looked around carefully. "So where are they?"

"Over here!" A hiss came from their right, and they saw Gakuto and Hiyoshi behind the corner of a jewelry store. The St. Rudolph team looked at them with hesitation.

Nomura asked suspiciously, "Are you sure we can trust them? What if it's a trap? Agh!" The barrage of plastic balls hadn't let up—in fact, it got harder.

"Let's just go, dane! We're going to get bruises if we don't hurry, dane!"

Akazawa glanced at Mizuki and then nodded. "All right, let's go!"

* * *

"They're gone," Kachiro announced after a moment. He smiled delightedly at his teammates, "We did it!"

As Katsuo cheered Horio struck a knowing pose and held his chin, boasting, "It was because of my brilliant strategy, of course! If I hadn't—"

"No it wasn't!" his friends interrupted firmly. "This time it was all Ryoma-kun's doing! He's the one who suggested using clear plastic balls to hit them."

The uni-brow boy made a reluctant face and sighed, "Yeah, I guess Echizen did okay."

"Hn." Ryoma didn't look up as he commented, "What's amazing is that none of the authorities have noticed us yet." His golden eyes narrowed as he thought of the Hyotei captain. Atobe must have pulled some strings with his influence.

"It's true," said a familiar voice. They turned in surprise and saw Inui crouching behind them, frowning at his notes. Eiji and Oishi were glancing around nervously as they followed, trying not to attract people's attention and failing.

"Nya, Inui, don't call Tezuka. He's not going to listen."

Inui ignored him. "My calculations predicted that the security guards should have been alerted after the spit wad attack. The battle has been going on for about fifteen minutes and twenty four seconds—that's ten minutes and twenty four seconds longer than expected."

Oishi exchanged worried looks with the freshmen, saying slowly, "So that means…"

"Nya, the security guards are gone!" Eiji pointed at the spots where the guards could be seen lurking in the shadows, and indeed they were empty.

Ryoma pulled his cap over his eyes. "Heh. That monkey king is really annoying."

Inui continued to frown at his notebook as he added, "Not only that, but it appears St. Rudolph has joined forces with Hyotei."

There was a pause, after which Kachiro moaned, "We're outnumbered!"

Horio breathed to keep himself from panicking, but that only lasted a second before he burst out, "We have to retreat! We need to make a new plan before—"

"Cadet Five!" Everyone turned to see Kyousuke dash up to them and pant. His eyes were alarmed as he blabbered out, "They're here! It's Level A danger! Warn Kamio—Momoshiro— _Yukimura Seii__chi is coming_!"

Stunned silence.

"_What_?" Oishi and Eiji were shocked. Inui looked dumbfounded. Even Ryoma was staring in surprise.

Kyousuke slumped and tried to catch his breath, closing his eyes. "The Rikkai Dai tennis team is here."

A shiver went down the three freshmen's backs.

After a moment Inui gravely said, "I'm calling Tezuka."

Eiji just nodded dumbly.

* * *

"Shouldn't we wake them up?"

Risai glanced over at Syusuke, who was watching over the three sleeping girls. She shook her head, "No, it's fine. The sponsor just called and said she was going to be late. Got caught in traffic or something. Besides, they look really tired." Then, realizing something, she told him, "You can leave them here with me and go out if you want…" He shook his head with a smile.

"It's okay. Ryuzaki-sensei told me to watch over Sakuno-chan until her meeting is over, so I don't mind staying here. That is, if _you_ don't mind?" She shook her head and laughed a little.

"You're so responsible. Are you her brother? Boyfriend?"

"Just an older brother figure."

"Ah." Risai finished tying a delicate bow on a small flower arrangement and observed it with satisfaction. "There. That makes a good gift for the sponsor, eh?" A movement caught her eye and she saw Kajimoto shifting in a chair that wasn't occupied by sleeping girls. She frowned and looked at the clock. "Akisa's late, isn't she? That's weird."

The captain didn't seem too bothered. "I just hope she hasn't run into any trouble." But Risai took out her cell phone and dialed her friend's number.

"In that case, she probably has," she told him with a hint of dryness. "Akisa hates making people wait for her, so she's usually early." When nobody picked up she frowned again. Then she dialed another number, murmuring, "She's not picking up. Maybe her—oh, hi Sarisa! Do you know where—Huh?"

Kajimoto was surprised when, after a moment, she turned to him with a confused expression and asked, "Hey, do you know a tennis player named Echizen Ryoma?"

Syusuke's blue eyes opened. "Echizen?"

She nodded, putting a hand over the speaker. "He has wild, red hair and is wearing a yellow—huh? Oh, never mind, there's a guy named Toyama Kintarou that has red hair and is supposed to be …stalking Echizen Ryoma?"

Kajimoto glanced at Syusuke in puzzlement. "Why would Echizen Ryoma be here?" But the tensai was thinking hard, a hand under his chin. After a moment he looked up and smiled.

"Ah, sorry, Risai-san. Yes, we do know Echizen Ryoma. And Toyama Kintarou. Why does your friend ask?"

Risai held up a hand, nodding into the phone. "Uh huh. Okay, so you're going to be late too? Oh, I mean, Akisa's not here yet either. That's why I called, I thought maybe you knew where she was. That's okay. She'll probably be here soon. I'll see you and Nanako—" She broke off and stared at the phone in bemusement before hanging up.

"What's wrong?"

She was still giving her phone a weird look. "I thought I could hear some guys in the background. They sounded like they were trying to ask her out." Then she shook out of her daze and looked at Kajimoto. "She doesn't know where Akisa is either."

He nodded and then stood up, bouquet and all. "I'm going to walk around the mall. Call me if she comes before I do."

"Will do. Have fun."

After he left with the jingling of chimes, Syusuke looked at Risai. "Why did your friend ask about Echizen Ryoma?"

She shrugged, saying, "Sarisa and Nanako met some redhead boy who was apparently stalking Ryoma. He's supposed to be here in front of the flower shop, but I can't see him from here. You said you knew him?"

He had been looking out the window thoughtfully, but at her question he looked back and smiled. "Oh, yes, I do. He's my teammate and one of the youngest and best tennis players I know…"

* * *

Atobe was almost satisfied. He had taken the very comfortable seat in the security room and was taking great pleasure in watching all the people through the security cameras. It was an exhilarating feeling to be able to watch everyone without their knowing, and even he, for all his familiarity with power, was excited.

But he was not foolish to think that he was untouchable. Already he knew that a couple intelligent enemies had found him out and were trying to figure out how to usurp his control. The arrival of Rikkai Dai was unexpected, but not disturbing in the least. He was far from danger, of course, but Atobe was never one to leave things half done, even if he did have a few aces up his sleeve.

The Hyotei captain snapped his fingers. "Kabaji. Tell the new recruits to aim for the second floor balconies. Those snipers need to be taken care of."

"Ossu."

"And tell them to continue firing at the game store. A couple Fudomine soldiers are hiding there."

"Ossu."

"Leave Rikkai Dai alone for now. They are too far away to cause us any trouble, but Ore-sama will figure out a plan to draw them out."

"Ossu." As Kabaji turned to leave, the door slammed open and Akazawa and Mizuki came in, followed by Shishido and Yuushi. The St. Rudolph recruits were supporting a dazed Kaneda up by his arms.

Atobe swiveled in his seat and raised an eyebrow. "Well? What's wrong?"

Shishido pointed to the half-unconscious boy, stating, "He got knocked out by some slingshot filled with sleeping powder."

Yuushi's eyes flickered to the screens behind the captain and said, "We believe it was Rikkai Dai's Niou Masaharu—the so-called trickster."

"The bastard disguised himself as a civilian and took a pot shot!" Mizuki fumed, glaring quite fiercely. He nearly dropped his side of Kaneda as he demanded, "Is it legal to use sleeping powder?"

"Calm down," Akazawa ordered, while trying to calm down himself. He propped his doubles partner against the wall and looked at Atobe steadily. "We need a plan to defend ourselves against Niou. His disguises are to his advantage, and he blends in with the shoppers."

Atobe turned back to the camera screens. One screen switched to an aerial view of the flower shop, and the Rikkai Dai team clustered on the benches in front of it. Then, an idea came to him, and he smirked. "The plan is simple." He turned to them and said knowingly, "Lure this trickster out and then stop him from returning to his team. That's when the team will fall apart."

Yuushi's glasses flashed as he followed his captain's plan. "You mean, as bait we use…"

"One of Fudomine or Seigaku's members," Shishido finished. Akazawa blinked in consideration while Mizuki nodded thoughtfully.

"I see. We can kill two birds with one stone."

Atobe waved a hand, remarking, "One of those freshmen will do. Or better yet, that brat, Echizen."

They nodded, and then trooped out, leaving Atobe alone in the room. Or rather, the only conscious one, seeing as Jirou was sleeping in one corner and Kaneda was knocked out. His thoughts were somewhere else, though.

"The battle is already underway, yet Tezuka has yet to show himself," he mused out loud. Had his greatest rival backed out from his own challenge, or was he here, hiding from Atobe's eyes and cameras? It was the latter, he decided, since he expected nothing less from the great Seigaku captain. In that case, Atobe would have to outsmart him.

He smirked. "Tezuka. Be awed by Ore-sama's acumen!"

* * *

"That's the gist of it. How soon will you be able to come, Tezuka?" There was a pause as Inui waited for a reply. Then he looked at the 'End Call' message on his phone and stated with some surprise, "He hung up."

On his other side Eiji clutched his forehead. "I told you he wouldn't listen if you called. Here, _I'll_ call—Oishi!" The vice captain grabbed the phone away from his partner with a knowing look. "O-i-shi! Why can't I call Tezuka, nya?"

Oishi shook his head. "I doubt he'll listen to any of us at this point. Though, I wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't going to come in the first place."

"Why not?" Inui asked puzzled. "Echizen overheard Tezuka and Atobe saying they were going to have a battle with a girl on the line."

Eiji sighed as Oishi replied, "Maybe they were talking about a _tennis_ battle, Inui."

Ryoma tugged his cap lower with a 'mada mada dane' ready on his lips, when Horio suddenly pointed, "Hey, isn't that Kajimoto-san from Jyosei Shonan?"

Everybody looked up and blinked. Inui was scribbling on his notebook with fervor. Eiji wondered out loud, "Is he going on a date, nya?"

Katsuo was fascinated at the image of the stern-looking captain dressed up and holding a bouquet of flowers. He nudged Kachiro, "I guess captains with emotions really _do_ exist, ne?"

"You can say that again," quipped an unfamiliar voice.

"Seriously. I almost doubted my hearing for a moment."

Horio gaped at the pink and blue-haired twins that had suddenly appeared behind him. "The Tanaka brothers!" Then a huge shadow blocked out the light and Horio squeaked as Kiriyama Daichi towered above them. "It's the giant!"

"Heh. Our buchou sure surprised us," remarked a voice under Kiriyama's shoulder. Everyone's heads snapped down to see Oota Shou smirking at them. "Yo!"

Voicing everyone's thoughts, Inui asked, "Why is Jyosei Shonan here as well?"

"We were curious," Kouhei shrugged carelessly.

"Yeah," chimed Youhei, "we wanted to know if Kajimoto had a single romantic bone in his body."

There was a familiar titter and they saw a boy wearing a tilted white cap, sunglasses and a white mask coming from behind Kiriyama. His orange hair was styled as usual which he tossed as he laughed, "It shocked me as well. _I_ could have gone on that obligatory date, but he said he would do it. Of course," he flipped his hair and everyone could almost see that dazzling smile behind the cloth, "there's no way anyone could entertain a girl better than _me_, but I wanted to see with my own eyes."

Inui decided to ask for everyone again, "Why are you wearing a mask, Wakato-san?"

The ladies man flourished a hand, remarking, "Wouldn't _I_ like to know—"

"It's so his fans don't recognize him and blow our cover," said a new voice, and Shinjou Reiji appeared beside Kiriyama. "Hanamura-sensei asked us to follow Kajimoto and observe his obligatory date with Irowa-san. We are to take notes and learn from his example." His tone and expression indicated that whatever the mission was, if Hanamura-sensei asked then it would be done, end of question.

Wakato didn't agree with this. "It's ridiculous since_ I_ am the master of dating—"

"Yeah, yeah," Kouhei interrupted. Youhei rolled his eyes.

Eiji couldn't help but sweatdrop. "Nya, then… you guys are here to spy?" He didn't add that there was one person who made such a stealthy tactic impossible, since it was glaringly obvious. He never really got used to Kiriyama's absurd height, especially after their match a couple years ago.

Beside him, Oishi wondered if all tennis teams had the same idiosyncrasy of spying on their teammates' dates. Perhaps it was a disease?

"By the way," started Shinjou, giving them an odd look, "what is Seigaku doing here?" And hiding behind a store of all places, his entire team thought.

Inui exchanged glances with everyone, before nodding. "I think you'd better know, since all the other teams know about it…"

Kachiro blinked at his friends and whispered, "By the way, has anybody contacted Code Dunk and Rhythm yet?" At their expressions he guessed nobody had. Something was beginning to sink in his stomach as he asked, "What about Agent Talk-a-Lot? Private Ori?" Heads shook.

They stared at each other, thinking the same thing.

_'Their bodies are lying unconscious somewhere in the mall and they have no way of contacting us.'_

* * *

Contrary to some peoples' beliefs, the missing leaders were not lying unconscious somewhere in the mall. Unfortunately, they were unable to contact anyone because their walkie-talkies were confiscated. The reason being, simply, that they had let their guards down.

Momoshiro glared and said through his gag, "Mmpho, mmeh ma meph mmh!" Translation: _Kamio, this is your fault!_

Kamio rolled his eyes and retorted, "Memaph, mmeh ma MEPH mmh!" Translation: _Bastard, this is YOUR fault!_

Tied together with the other two, Shinji mumbled, "Mph mmrh meph mmh mmrp mm. Mmr mmpherm mmrh mmmmm…" Translation: _This is both of your faults. If only I had_…

Last but not least, Tatsunori groaned, "Mmph mrmph!" Translation: _Shut up!_

"Eh? It's getting noisy back here." The tallest of the Yamabuki players, and one half of the Jimmies, Higashikata grinned down at the four POWs. Beside him stood Muromachi, a more gloating smile on his face.

"Hah! Don't look so tough now, do you? Of course, you're no match for Sengoku-senpai." If looks could kill, Muromachi would be dead ten times over by now.

Dan was bouncing on his heels near the balcony railing, eagerly chanting, "We're going to win, desu! We're winning the battle, desu! Sengoku-senpai is so smart, isn't he, buchou?"

Standing next to him with a posture that was not as enthusiastic as his kouhai's, the spiky-haired captain raised an eyebrow. He looked over at the orange-haired vice, who was kneeling next to the railing with Shinji's binoculars. "Oi, Sengoku. Don't tell me you called all of us here just to ambush these four." He gestured to the four, tied guys on the floor.

Sengoku glanced up from the binoculars with an addictive grin, "Eh, buchou, that's not it. This is a team-building activity. You said it yourself, remember?"

Minami sighed, "That's because I thought we were going out to eat! Not sneak up on Fudomine and Seigaku and make them detainees!" He placed a hand on his forehead. "Honestly, first Inui-san, now you… and why is there a battle over girls in the first place?"

"Buchou!" Dan suddenly stopped dancing and stared at him with serious eyes. "We are men, desu! We will forever be battling for girls, desu! It is a battle that we must fight until the end of our lives, desu!"

The other half of the Jimmies sweatdropped and asked, "Where did you get that from?"

"Sengoku-senpai, desu!"

"...You lie."

"Hey." Sengoku suddenly blinked at something, and the others came to look over his shoulder. "Isn't that Shitenhouji?"

* * *

Talking was thirsty work, so Syusuke helped himself to another cup of tea that Risai had prepared. "Risai-san?" He noticed the slight twitch on her face and he asked curiously, "Why do you call everyone by their first names? And does 'Risai-san' really bother you?"

She laughed, "Not really. Most people don't call my name at all since I'm so weird, so I'm not used to it. But, I call everyone by their first names because I'd forget them otherwise. And most times I won't even see that person again, so it's not like I'll remember anyways. It's a waste of time, you know? I'm not being rude or anything," she added quickly, "it's just a lot more comfortable…"

He smiled and nodded. "I see what you mean, Risai."

A grin. "You probably do. I have a lot of part time jobs and odd hobbies so I can help support my family. I see so many patrons that I don't even remember their faces, nevertheless their names." She took a sip from her tea and then laughed, "Why just today I got some unexpected visitors while playing piano—"

At the sudden pause he looked up and was alarmed to see her horrified face. "Risai? What's wrong?"

She slammed the tea cup on the counter and rushed out the door, "I forgot about Choutarou! The piano shift is already—"

Syusuke watched the door gently close, the chimes singing. "Choutarou? Ohtori Choutarou?" Then, deciding it had nothing to do with him, calmly sipped his tea.

* * *

"Hey, what's that crowd over there?"

"Hear that? It's so beautiful."

"A pianist. They say he's a professional…"

Meanwhile, people were gathering to listen to the boy playing so beautifully. He finished the piece with a golden note and they burst into a hearty applause. He blushed modestly while bowing.

"Encore! Encore!" They started to chant, wanting to hear more.

Choutarou was flattered that they liked his playing so much, but slightly flustered. This wasn't even his job, yet he was enjoying the attention, and it felt like he was reaping the benefits that should have been someone else's. Still, it wasn't like he could just stop and leave. And to be honest, he just hadn't felt this thrill in playing the piano ever since the Tokyo national piano competition. Perhaps playing today like this was just meant to be.

There was a tug on his sleeve and he turned to see a cute girl staring at him. "Do you know how to play 'Over the Rainbow'?" she asked hopefully.

It was his older sister's favorite piece, he realized with a start. He hadn't played it in a while, but when he was younger she often asked him to play it for her. Hoping his fingers remembered the correct notes he smiled at her and replied, "Yes. Is it your favorite song?"

She shook her head. "No. Onee-chan's. She's sick right now, but I'm sure she can hear it from here."

Whatever shadows of hesitation he still had in his mind flew away like birds as he patted her head gently. "I'm sure she will, little one." At his words, her face brightened.

And he played.

* * *

"Koshimae, I'm going to defeat you! Koshimae, I will crush you to the ground! Koshimae—" Kintarou paused, a thoughtful look on his face, before he brightened. "Koshimae, get ready to buy me dinner!"

Akisa smiled hesitantly at the redhead's antics and suggested, "Kintarou-san, why don't you save your battle cries for when you meet him?" She nearly cringed when he suddenly turned on her with a massive pout. "Eh, Kintarou-san…"

"Kin-chan!" He frowned. "Not '–san'! I'll call you Akisa-chan, and you call me Kin-chan!"

They were starting to attract stares. She hastily complied, "Okay, okay, Kin-chan. Just please… tone down your volume. I'm afraid Ojii-chan will get overwhelmed." The two looked at the old man walking beside them, an oblivious smile on his face. "Er, you might overwhelm me too," she added before the redhead could argue.

But then Kintarou began jumping up and down exuberantly, pointing and shouting with glee, "It's Koshimae! Koshimae, I found you!" Before Akisa could even blink, the redhead was gone and zooming towards the game shop, where she could make out a large group of people hiding behind the pillars.

"Kin-chan! Wait!" she called, but of course he didn't hear her. Someone bumped into her, making her stagger in her heels. "Oh, sorry!"

"No, I'm sorry," the tall, ice-haired boy said, releasing her arm. He bowed slightly, and disappeared into the crowd of people. She blinked, surprised that such an intimidating guy was gentlemanly enough to apologize. Looks could be very deceiving, as everybody would find out later.

She glanced down at the old man's shiny bald head and sighed. "Come on, Ojii-chan, we can rest in that flower shop over there. My cousin, not to mention my date, is probably—" As she was looking up at said shop, she saw a sight that made her freeze.

There was a group of tall high school guys circled around a girl. A familiar girl who looked an awful lot like Risai.

It _was_ Risai.

She broke into a run, every lesson and protocol that her mother taught her about ladies never running in public flying out of her head.

"_Risai!_"

* * *

It happened so suddenly.

One second she was running out of the shop, the next second she'd run face-first into a wall. Dazed, she held her tender nose and looked up to see not a wall but a sturdy boy about her age.

Wondering what kind of idiot went running into people like that, she murmured, "Sorry," and turned to go. A strong hand gripped her wrist, keeping her from moving, and she opened her mouth in alarm—

A hard voice commanded, "Let her go, Akaya."

The hand released her, and she saw a boy with messy, dark hair and playful green eyes that pouted, "Aw, but she was about to run off." He gave her a wide grin, "Fukubuchou needs to ask ya something."

Before she could really run off and find security, a gentle voice admonished, "Stop it. You're not considering her feelings." A handsome boy with blue hair who seemed to be the leader smiled politely. "I'm sorry for our rudeness. Please excuse us."

She blinked. "Um. Sure." Now that she wasn't in any danger, her mission to rescue Choutarou from playing piano into oblivion returned full force. "Um, excuse me, but I'm in a hurry—"

"Risai!" At the female cry everyone turned to see a young lady wearing a sundress and heels running wildly toward them. Most of the guys' expressions were taken aback at the unusual sight. Risai blinked.

"Akisa?"

"Don't touch her!" Akisa skidded to a halt beside her friend, glaring up at them as best she could while breathing hard. "Or I'll call the police and tell them you were harassing her!"

"_Akisa_," Risai choked out again, this time shaking her friend's arm. "Akisa, it's okay, they're not doing anything! They're not harassing me."

The handsome blue-haired boy smiled again and assured, "We're not trying to harass your friend. We just wanted to ask her a question."

Akisa stared at him and her naturally pale face turned bright red. She bowed deeply, saying, "I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! I wasn't thinking, I just rushed in without even—I'm such a—I'm _so_ sorry!"

The boy who'd grabbed Risai chuckled, remarking to the quiet Brazilian boy, "Hear that? We looked like perverts! If Niou-senpai was here he'd totally—"

"Akaya!" A stern, tall boy barked for the second time, glaring. He turned to the girls and bowed slightly. "I apologize for disturbing you as well. We want to know if Tezuka Kunimitsu is with you or not."

Risai blinked and remembered the conversation she had with Syusuke. Thankful she could be helpful, she nodded, "Kunimitsu? No. He's Ryoma and Syusuke's tennis captain, right?"

There was a collective, stunned pause.

_'Just who _is _this girl?" _

Akisa sighed.

* * *

"Hey, Koshimae, why are you hiding behind the trash bin? Let's play a match! Come on, I wanna play a match! Koshimae, let's go!"

Ryoma tried not to show his irritation at the loud and bouncy redhead beside him and said, "My name is not—"

"Hey Koshimae, where's your girlfriend? I thought she was always with you."

Inui, Eiji and Oishi looked at him. "Oh? Is that so, Echizen?" Inui's glasses flashed. "Who is your girlfriend?"

Ryoma grit his teeth and stated, "No one. I don't have a girlfriend, Inui-senpai—"

"Wow! I can't believe it! Ochibi has a girlfriend, nya!" Eiji grabbed him from behind. Oishi was cautioning his friend not to choke the tennis prince to death—at least, not before the tournaments. Eiji ignored him, wanting to vent out his boredom.

Horio commented loudly, "I can't believe Echizen actually got a girlfriend before us! I thought I'd never live to see the day!" Kachiro and Katsuo nodded in agreement.

Wishing he could hit a couple tennis balls and knock some sense into their heads, Ryoma began irritably, "I keep telling you, I don't have a girl—"

"Huh? Wow, wow!" Once again, the redhead was interrupting without thought. He shielded his eyes and stared out, exclaiming, "It's Shiraishi! And everybody! How did they get here? Why are they here? Did they want to play too?"

Following his gaze, everyone turned and saw the Shitenhouji team walking towards the flower shop. Inui muttered something about the battle extending into farther regions of Japan than he'd expected, and Eiji continued to choke his Ochibi to certain death.

Oishi noticed a couple people in the group that weren't on the tennis team, and was about to say so when Horio shouted in protest. Everyone's heads turned back.

Kintarou grabbed a couple BB guns, remarking, "I wonder if Shiraishi can dodge this." He loaded it with some clear, plastic balls and grinning mischievously. "This will be fun!"

**End Part 6**

* * *

A/N: And here's the sixth part! Yamabuki, St. Rudolph, Shitenhouji… welcome to the fray! Anyways, now that it's beginning to get complex and stuff (maybe?), if there're any questions or confusion, I'll be more than glad to clarify. XD And I realized I called Dan Taichi by his first name... I think. And some other people. Eh. I'm older than them anyhow, so it's all good.

As always, I expect there are some stupid mistakes, even though I read it over a millions times. Please excuse the silliness! And the OOCness.

Thank you so much for taking time to read. Hope it was worth your while!

* * *


	7. Part 7: Nanako

**

* * *

**

Part 7: _Nanako _(.x.Shitenhouji the Valiant.x.Goddess Returns.x.Alliance-ism.x.)

* * *

Nanako thought she knew tennis players by now. After all, she lived under the same roof as two tennis stars—one retired and one on the verge. Being related to such athletes hadn't inspired her to take up the racket and start playing, but she knew a thing or two about the sport and didn't mind learning more.

And so she thought, what with living with such people for years, she knew tennis players. Maybe she wouldn't know their names or their playing styles, but nothing they would do would surprise her. Living with an ex-pro player who turned into a lazy monk and read girl magazines like a pervert she could handle, and she believed that was the farthest a tennis player's quirkiness could go.

"Ne, Sarisa-san? Is your younger sister as enchanting as you?"

"Oi, Chitose, you'll scare her with a question like that."

Sarisa replied simply, "Ah, my sister is much prettier than I am." Nanako had to sweatdrop at the boys' positive response.

They'd asked her what it was like to live with professionals—namely Echizen Ryoma. They were curious how he acted when he was at home. They were surprised when she smiled and said that he acted exactly the same as when he was on the courts, at school, at the store, with his family, or anywhere. Her smile was fond as she said that he was an Echizen, through and through.

But she was his family too, Ishida Gin pointed out mildly as they entered the mall. Sarisa was in the front of the group, conversing with Chitose Senri and laughing at Konjiki and Hitouji's antics. Hikaru was behind them with a slightly bored look, hands shoved in his pockets. Oshitari Kenya sometimes walked beside the second year, or fell back with the captain. Bringing up the rear was Gin, who turned out to be a pleasant companion, as she found out. Kenya and Shiraishi often fell back to listen.

"Ryoma-san is quiet and mostly keeps to himself at home," she told her sturdy companion. "Sometimes it's hard to tell what he's thinking or how he's feeling. But, I know he's a very thoughtful person." She smiled warmly. "He's a good son and a good cousin, and a very good owner. Oh, he has a cat named Karupin," she explained at the slightly blank look.

"Does he play tennis more than he stays at home?" Kenya had dropped back to join in the conversation.

She giggled a little as if sharing a secret. "We have a tennis court at home, so I can't really say. But," her face became thoughtful, "when he plays with Oji-chan, he seems most at home."

It was as they passed the piano and the coffee shop when it happened. Sarisa's voice called, "Ah, there's the flower shop." Nanako noticed Shiraishi glancing around, as if looking for something.

She looked around as well, saying, "Perhaps Kintarou-san hasn't found Ryoma—" Gin pulled her back behind him just in time, blocking the plastic balls that would have speeded into her face. Before she could absorb what had just happened, a few well-aimed spit wads flew toward them, only to be caught by Shiraishi and Kenya.

Nanako was once again amazed by the tennis athletes' reflexes.

At the front of the group, Sarisa would have almost undergone the same fate had the doubles pair not skillfully caught the projectiles.

Chitose was gazing up narrowly at the second floor balconies. "Those are…"

"Yamabuki?" Hikaru asked, also looking straight at them. Konjiki and Hitouji were telling a shocked Sarisa to stay back behind them.

A flash of movement on their right, near the emergency stairs caught Kenya's attention. He glanced at his captain, who nodded back and stated, "Fudomine and Seigaku are here as well."

The speed master dodged a flying neon ball and smirked. "Oh? They're trying to challenge us."

As if in answer, more bullets shot at them. Gin made a disapproving grunt and motioned for Nanako to stay behind him. "They are cowards, attacking the women without any regard." _'I thought I taught you better than that… Tetsu!'_

Sarisa found her blue-haired friend in the center of the team and asked worriedly, "What's going on? Why are we under attack?"

Nanako shook her head. "What time is it? Aren't Risai-chan and Akisa-chan waiting for us?"

Hearing them, Shiraishi commanded to his team, "All right, form a tight circle around Nanako-san and Sarisa-san! We'll escort them to the shop."

Konjiki was already linking arms with Hitouji so their part was easy. "We'll protect you, Sarisa-san! Nanako-san!"

Chitose smirked as he led the circle. "I wonder if Kippei is with them." Then he paused, trying remember why that sounded so familiar. "Hm... Kippei? Wasn't I supposed to...?" At his side, Hikaru narrowed his eyes in concentration, not letting any arsenal get past him.

Gin was like a solid, impenetrable wall, and Kenya told the two females to stick behind him. Shiraishi defended the rear, making sure the ambushers wouldn't catch them unguarded.

"Protect the ladies!"

They didn't notice the people staring oddly at them, nor the shoppers who were scurrying for cover from stray bullets. There were no security guards to complain to so the Shitenhouji team was relatively unstoppable.

Nanako realized vaguely that there were still many more tennis players who would never fail to surprise her.

* * *

Ryoma glared at the redhead beside him. "You almost hit my cousin." But Kintarou was too excited to pay much attention to his rival. He seemed to have forgotten his earlier challenge in place of this new game.

"Nii-san…" Tetsu grabbed a handful of plastic balls with fire in his eyes. "I'll beat you! You're going down!"

Inui held the phone to his ear. "…Tezuka? It's me, Inui. Shitenhouji has arrived with two female hostages. How soon can you be…" He paused and then looked at his phone, frowning. "He hung up."

Eiji slapped a hand on his brow and sighed. "Nya, of course he did! Why don't we just go and talk it over with everyone else, nya?"

"I think Eiji's right," Oishi said nervously, watching the Shitenhouji team brave through the onslaught of plastic, rubber and paper. "This is insane! I can't believe the workers haven't noticed all this stuff on the floor! And someone might actually get hurt." It was the latter that bothered him. Everyone seemed determined to annihilate one another.

"Not yet." Inui dialed another number, saying, "We should let Taka know about this. And Kaidoh."

"I-nu-i!" Eiji groaned and fell back. His doubles partner just sighed, shaking his head.

Horio, Kachiro and Katsuo glanced at each other while firing the ammo. They agreed that their senpai-tachi were right, but how could they stop now? The battle was at its max and there was no way anyone could or would surrender. They would keep fighting, no matter what, to the very end.

And so…

"For Tachibana An!"

"You're going down, Nii-san!"

"Ah, Taka. It's me, Inui. Yes, it's a battle…"

"Whoo, Shiraishi, you're good! Let's see you dodge _this_!"

Ryoma tugged his cap rather moodily. "Mada mada dane."

* * *

"Ojii!"

"Ojii, where are you?"

Saeki tousled his hair in frustration, sighing, "Really, where could he have gone in this mall?"

Cupping his hands, Kentarou called out loudly, "O-jii! We have your favorite drinks right here! Ojii!" He sighed as well with a worried face and said, "I hope he didn't run into any bullies again. Ojii seems to do that all the time."

There was a weighted pause as the Rokkaku team registered this concern. Then—

"Looking for an old man… is getting old. Pfft." The gel-haired boy expected the usual kick to the head and cringed, but when it didn't come, he blinked and turned to his doubles partner. Kurobane was looking off to the side at something rather bemusedly. "What is it?" Amane asked curiously.

Kisarazu Ryou had been trailing behind the group, having been delayed by a guitar shop. He was wearing his white cap, but his long hair was tucked inside his jacket. "What's wrong?" he asked as he saw his team collectively looking at something.

"Why?" Itsuki suddenly asked in his plaintive tone. "Why is your hair inside your jacket?"

Before Ryou could answer (or retort) Kentarou blinked at Kurobane, "Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

Amane was astounded as well. "Isn't that the captain of Jyosei Shonan?" he questioned, for once sparing his teammates another pun.

Kurobane finally spoke. "He looks like he's going on a date. Look at that huge bouquet." The team stared at the violet-eyed captain in silent wonderment, noticing the large flowers he held.

Saeki's gaze shifted and he started in surprise. His eyes met familiar dark gray eyes that blinked in surprise as well, before they crinkled into a smile.

"Hi, Saeki-kun!"

Heads whipped around to look at the beautiful woman who was steadily walking toward the white-black haired boy, and jaws dropped. In the stunned silence Kurobane nudged his doubles partner and muttered, "Oi, isn't that Fuji Syusuke's older sister?" A dumb nod confirmed his question.

Saeki smiled back and greeted, "Yumiko-san! How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you. It's been a while since I've seen you outside of tennis." She looked at the boys behind him. "Are you hanging out with your friends?"

"Ahah, you can call it that. We're actually looking for our coach. Maybe you've seen him? He's very old and bald, and has a long, white beard. I'm afraid he's wandering around again, and he has a meeting to attend soon."

She shook her head apologetically, saying, "I'm sorry, I haven't seen him. I could keep an eye out for him while I go to the flower shop."

Saeki felt a couple people shove him from behind and Kentarou and Amane appeared at his sides, smiling goofily at Yumiko. "The flower shop? Really? We were just heading there too!"

"No we wer—" started a confused Ryou, but he was quickly piped down by Kurobane who clapped a hand over his mouth.

Yumiko was surprised but smiled pleasantly, suggesting, "Then we can go together, ne, Saeki-kun?"

He felt heated stares drilling into his head and tried not to sigh as he nodded, "Yes, Yumiko-san." Kentarou and Amane whooped and began to vie for the fair lady's attention, while the rest of the team followed.

"Why are we going to the flower shop? Ojii isn't buying flowers, is he? Why are we going there?" Itsuki turned to his doubles partner. "Why?"

Saeki held back a resigned tone. "Because we like flowers." He shot a look at Kurobane, who was chuckling under his breath. "We like flowers, don't we, Bane-san?"

"But why?" Itsuki prompted.

"Yeah, why?" Kurobane snickered.

All they got was a loud sigh.

* * *

"Akisa!"

"Onee-chan!"

"Nanako!"

"Risai-chan!"

The Rikkai Dai and Shitenhouji teams gazed on as the four females embraced each other like they hadn't seen one another in years. The atmosphere wasn't very tense between the tennis teams, considering Rikkai Dai defeated Shitenhouji once during the Nationals. Still, it was much more comfortable staring at each other over the girls' heads than if they stared directly at each other.

Shiraishi nodded at the other captain in greeting. "It's been a while, Yukimura. Sanada."

The stern vice-captain nodded back. Yukimura replied with a small smile, "Likewise. What brings your team all the way here from Osaka?"

"We're here to meet our teammate," Kenya spoke up, stepping forward beside his captain. "We didn't expect to see Rikkai Dai here."

From the back of the group Yanagi replied, "We're here to see Tezuka."

"Tezuka?" Chitose raised an eyebrow, saying, "He's here? Is there a meeting with all the tennis teams today? Kippei never mentioned anything."

"There is supposedly a meeting between Hyotei and Seigaku," Sanada reported, his eyes flickering at his captain. "We came to ascertain if it was true."

"Hyotei?" said Kenya with some surprise. He looked at his captain, who raised an eyebrow.

Hikaru scowled at the other team. "That's not all. Yamabuki and Fudomine are here as well. Right?" He glanced at Chitose, but the older teammate was concentrating on his cell phone, not paying attention to them.

"We know," Kirihara answered with a grin. "Niou-senpai spotted them at least fifty feet away. He's probably knocked them all out by now, what with that bottle of sleeping powder."

Yagyuu's glasses flashed. "With the current mood he's in, I don't doubt it. But he's been gone for a long time."

"So has Marui," remarked Jackal, his face calm as usual. At their blank expressions he blinked back. "Haven't you noticed? He said he would go help Niou at least half an hour ago."

"Oh no!" Everyone turned to look at the girls, including the captains. Risai didn't notice as she stared at her watch in horror. "This is _bad_. What am I doing? I have to call Takahisa—but Choutarou is probably still playing! And the sponsor might be here any minute…!"

Akisa grabbed her arms to calm her down. "Risai, wait, you're not making any sense. Slow down."

The soon-to-be florist visibly took a few deep breaths before saying, "I should call Takahisa first."

"No need. And it's Kajimoto." At the new voice everyone turned and saw the violet-eyed captain walking toward them. Sanada's brows lifted, though his cap obscured them.

"Jyosei Shonan?" Yukimura was slightly surprised, as was Yanagi, though he was more intrigued by the new arrival's choice of clothes.

Kirihara's brows rose higher than his vice captain as he spied the flowers and whistled. "A date, eh?"

Kajimoto didn't seem fazed by the last comment, though Risai suspected he handed the flowers rather jerkily to Akisa. He bowed formally, saying, "I'm glad you've arrived safely, Irowa-san." She smiled shyly and took them, not thrown off by the sudden assault of fragrance or the unintentional audience at all.

"Oi, there he goes!"

"What kind of a pick-up line was that? Pathetic!"

"I would have done a _thousand_ times better."

At these not-so-quiet whispers they all turned and saw a bunch of faces peeking from behind a pillar. A pair of magenta and azure heads tipped Kajimoto off immediately.

"Uh oh, he sees us."

"Retreat! Run for it!"

But one person stayed behind, laughing softly to himself as he flipped his orange hair. "It seems our captain does not have the talent of luring in the feminine species. Of course, he could have just let _me_ go out with Irowa-san, but—"

"Wakato."

"—one cannot argue against Hanamura-sensei, so naturally I stepped back and let—"

"Wakato."

"—because none can ever compare to me when it comes to pleasing the opposite sex—" Not bothering to get his attention anymore, Shinjou appeared and grabbed the ladies' man by the collar. Wakato managed to wink at Akisa (who was staring along with everyone else) and called, "If the captain doesn't satisfy you, you are welcome to seek me anytime you wish!" His laughter faded as he was dragged away.

Kajimoto couldn't tell if his teammate was serious or not, but he decided it didn't matter. He turned to Akisa and bowed again. "I apologize for my teammate. If you can, please ignore what he said—"

There was a flash. Sarisa held up her digital camera and grinned. "Smile, you two!" The camera flashed again at the blinking couple, nearly blinding them.

"Ah, Risa-chan," Nanako started, a hand on her friend's arm. "Shouldn't we be going? You wanted to see Risai-chan's flower shop—" Her eyes widened and she gasped, "Ryoma-san! I forgot!"

"Where?" Kirihara and Sanada both said at once, looking around for the tennis star. Yukimura was slightly interested at the unfolding drama.

Shiraishi sighed, lifting a bandaged arm to his head. "He's not here, and neither is Kintarou."

"You know Echizen Ryoma?" Yanagi asked the older girl curiously. He mentally wondered why she seemed so familiar.

A sudden panicked yell caught their attention, just in time to see red hair and a bubblegum zoom past them. Marui skidded to a stop behind Yagyuu and ducked as a volley of spit wads and various other arsenals followed. The group quickly crouched in defense.

"Not again!" Konjiki cried, already moving with Hitouji to stand in front of the girls. Chitose was hit while he was on his phone. Annoyed, he stooped to pick up a neon ball and threw it back at the attackers. He was rewarded with a yelp.

"Stand in formation!" Shiraishi was standing in front of the girls as well, returning the projectiles while Kenya caught the flying objects nimbly. "They're not the same people from before."

Rikkai Dai was taken aback by Shitenhouji's swift response, but only momentarily. As if in mutual agreement, Sanada and Yukimura went to stand beside the front liners, as Yanagi mentally calculated the speed and distance the attackers were assailing them. Like a little boy, Kirihara grabbed up a bunch of fallen balls and shot them back at rapid speed, cackling happily.

Yagyuu looked back at the panting volley specialist, remarking, "You ran rather quickly, Marui. I'd say you broke your fastest record by five seconds."

"What did you do?" Jackal demanded.

Marui managed to grin as he fell to the ground, his short stamina already at its limit. "I got those Hyotei bastards good. Oh, and Niou disappeared somewhere. Said he had something to take care of."

His doubles partner frowned. "But what did you _do_?"

"Did you see Tezuka?" asked Yagyuu.

"Nah. I just saw a bunch of Yamabuki people up in the balconies." Marui moved his jaw in a chewing motion but then stopped. "Aw, I spit out my last gum. Hey, do you—"

"Marui. What did you do?"

The redhead made a face and said, "Do you really want to know that bad? I just pulled a couple tricks here and there. Had them running around in circles like monkeys. I need gum. Don't you have any—" He blinked when a pack of gum dropped into his lap. "Oh, thanks."

"No problem." Sarisa smiled at him and asked, "Do you know what's going on here? People are staring at us."

Since Marui was too winded to speak, Yagyuu answered for him, "We're in the middle of a battle. There are tennis teams from several regions of Japan here, and it seems everyone is competing for the sake of girls." His tone or facial expression didn't show how he felt about such an event, but then Marui thought he detected a strained sort of politeness in the gentleman's words.

Sarisa blinked. "I… see."

Meanwhile, standing behind the line of Rikkai Dai and Shitenhouji players, Risai, Akisa and Kajimoto stared at each other.

"Shouldn't you two be having your date?" Risai asked.

Akisa retorted, "You think we _can_?"

The florist pointed at Kajimoto, "If your boyfriend joined the fight and helped us win, you'll be able to enjoy yourselves sooner, yeah?"

He raised an eyebrow and turned to his date. "Would you like me to join them?"

"Please don't. I'd hate for your outfit to get ruined," Akisa said lightly.

"Okay."

Risai threw up her hands.

Off to the side, Nanako waved her phone in the air, trying to get better reception. She felt stupid, but she was more worried about her cousin than her image at the moment.

Yukimura managed to remark to Shiraishi, "I was expecting to see Tezuka, but this is quite fun." Sanada almost stared at his captain before catching himself in time to duck a soaring plastic ball.

The captain of Shitenhouji replied dryly, "Really? I was expecting more."

Hikaru's voice rose from above the melee, "They've got reinforcements!"

* * *

The enemy retaliated much better than they expected, but Hyotei and St. Rudolph still pressed on. Shishido grimaced when a neon ball managed to explode goo all over his shoulder, and he shot back two more speed balls. He glanced over at Gakuto, whose stamina was already ragging on him, but he was still at it determinedly.

"It's gekokujou," grounded out Hiyoshi, before he himself was overthrown by a torrent of well-aimed plastic balls. Luckily Akazawa was there to haul him back up before he hit the ground.

Mizuki tried to lay out a scenario to counter-attack but it was difficult with so many objects flying toward his face. "We should have planned this out better," he gritted to Atsushi, who was ducking behind a trash can.

"Yanagisawa is out of commission in the security room," reported Nomura as he appeared by St. Rudolph's captain. "It wasn't Niou's sleeping powder as we suspected, but rather Seigaku and Fudomine's attack." He made a dark face and added, "Yamabuki's Sengoku Kiyosumi was also spotted in the same second floor balcony that Ibu Shinji had been occupying."

Mizuki heard this and exclaimed, "What? I thought Yamabuki was against Fudomine!" He barely managed to avoid getting nailed in the head.

"Why are we fighting again?" muttered Atsushi as a neon ball hit his leg. Goo was all over his new pants and he hoped Mizuki's speculation that the substance would not come off ever again was not true… for his sake as well as the manager's.

"It's a battle over girls," responded Yuushi, who was taking shelter behind a pillar. Fools rushed into battle and he was always the thinker. His clothes were brand new and rather expensive, and he didn't feel like getting globs of goo all over them. Seeing firsthand the power of Shishido and Gakuto's special-mixed weapon during the graduation prank only solidified that feeling.

Atsushi took one look at Yuushi's immaculate clothes and wished he had the same forethought. But it was too late anyway, so he continued to fight. "Girls? What kind of a reason it that?"

"Apparently it is a battle to win a girl's heart. Ryuzaki Sakuno, I believe." Yuushi rubbed his chin and wondered, "But I don't know why Atobe would fight for someone like her. It's not like him."

"It's not just Sakuno-chan." Yuuta suddenly came up behind them, coming from the security room. "Yanagizawa-senpai is okay now, but he needs time to recover. So does Kaneda-senpai."

"Good," said Atsushi, nodding. "What do you mean by not just Ryuzaki-san?"

Yuuta's face became grim. "My brother is on a date, remember? He's with Sakuno-chan, An-san _and_ Tomoka-chan. I heard him say so last night on the phone."

Blinking, Yuushi asked, "But why would Atobe and Tezuka bother fighting over them? And why would Fuji get in the middle of it? He isn't the kind of person to deliberately cross those two."

"That's right," chimed Mizuki, suddenly materializing by Yuuta's side. He was a sight to be seen, what with the goo and spit wads sticking on his entire body. But in the heat of battle the vain manager didn't care anymore (or just hadn't notice yet). "Fuji-kun is extremely self-preservative and would never make an effort to get involved in anything troublesome." He paused and smirked, observing, "That's to be expected from my acknowledged rival."

"But more importantly," Yuushi inputted seriously, drawing everyone's attention, "we'll be in trouble if we continue this. We're attracting too much attention." Indeed, passing shoppers were beginning to complain to the store owners and wondering why the security guards hadn't stopped the fight yet.

"True," agreed Mizuki as he exchanged glances with the others, "but what are we going to do about it?"

Yuushi's glasses flashed and he smirked. "Call the boss, of course."

* * *

"Nya, Inui, how long are you going to make us wait?" Eiji's entire visage drooped with exhaustion as he sat beside Ryoma. "You said that Rikkai Dai and Shitenhouji are already negotiating for the girls, nya. Doesn't that mean the battle's over?"

Inui pushed up his glasses. "Not yet. He should be here any minute now."

"No he won't nya! Tezuka never comes!"

Horio sighed along with his senpai, taking a break from wildly throwing balls at Yanagisawa. It had been a tough win, but they'd finally taken the duck-sounding boy down. Justice, Momoshiro and Kamio would have called it. Cruel, Oishi had exclaimed with horror. Whatever. It was all the same now in Horio's battle-worn mind.

"Koshimae, I'm bored! Let's go play a match!"

"No."

"Aw, Koshimae!"

Ryoma glared irritably at the redhead. "And my name's Echizen. Who the heck is Koshimae?"

Tetsu was sitting by the freshmen, holding his arm, which was shaking and tired from throwing the balls so hard at his brother (_Hadoukyuu!_). He was feeling a little guilty, attacking them when there were clearly girls present. After all, wasn't the whole point of this battle to _protect_ innocent girls from the evil manipulation of lechers, not smack them with fire-like balls? So he silently berated himself.

"By the way," Kachiro asked Katsuo, "who are we waiting for?"

"It's not Tezuka-buchou. At least, that's what Eiji-senpai says."

"Do you think it might be Momo-chan senpai?" He didn't bother with the code names anymore, and nobody really cared.

A shrug. "They won't answer our calls. Maybe they lost the radios?"

Eiji was fairly at the end of his limits now. "Inui! If this is going to be like the last time, then I'm not waiting anymore! We kept waiting and waiting for Kaoru but then we missed the love square fight! I don't want to miss another one!"

His doubles partner stared at him, shocked by the acrobatics' lack of 'nya's. "E-Eiji…" _'He's serious.' _

Inui was busy scribbling down something in his notebook. "Patience, Eiji. He should be here any second now."

"_I-nu-i_—"

"Inui!" Kawamura Takashi suddenly appeared out of nowhere, skidding to a halt.

"Wah!" Kintarou nearly fell into the garbage can he was sitting on. Takashi was fresh from the sushi shop still wearing his uniform and the rope around his head. He looked around frantically.

"Where's the battle? What hostages? And why can't Tezuka come?"

"Huh?" Horio blinked at his senpai in surprise. "Kawamura-senpai, you didn't run here with your racket?"

Inui scribbled again, murmuring, "Ii data. When under extreme worry or stress Taka doesn't need his racket for energy…"

Eiji blinked dumbly. "Hoi? We… we were waiting for Taka? This entire time…"

Inui finally patted the retired Seigaku tennis player's shoulder, saying, "Calm down, it's okay. The battle is still going on and—"

"Not if we keep waiting here!" The acrobatic bounced to his feet, determination in his eyes. "I'm going no matter what! Lets go!" Before he could run off, there was a beeping sound over the P.A. system and a very familiar voice came through the loud speakers.

"Attention, ladies and gentlemen. This is a very special announcement, made by the one and only Ore-sama, whose marvelous visage can be transferred through his magnificent voice—"

"Monkey king," muttered Ryoma in an annoyed tone.

"Sh!" everyone shushed him.

"—there is a piano concert being held near the main entrance. The pianist is none other than a close friend and worker of the Atobe Corporation. If you wish to listen to the melodious sound that has graced the Atobe family's ears, then go immediately! He will sign autographs in Ore-sama's name for those who want it. There will also be a seventy percent clearance sale for the next hour on the entire third floor, so hurry if you do not want to miss it. Everything will be sponsored by the illustrious Atobe Corporation. Go spend your money to your commoner's heart's content. If you want dreams to come true, then take Ore-sama's gift! Do not waste it!"

"Wasn't that Atobe-sama? That was his voice, right?"

"Let's go!"

"There's a pianist?"

"It's a clearance sale! Go to the third floor!"

"I'm surprised he even knows what a clearance sale is," Eiji whispered to Oishi, who nodded dumbfoundedly.

As if on consensus all the shoppers and store owners ran out of the shops and began heading for either the main entrance or the third floor. A mob of fanatic girls rushed to the piano, wanting to get the first second-hand autograph.

The group watched as the packed area quickly emptied until the whole place was quiet. Now they could clearly hear the battle that was happening near the flower shop.

There was a fuzzy noise and then static. Everyone turned to look at a blinking Kachiro, who took out his walkie-talkie and said tentatively, "Hello?"

"Hey, this is Sengoku! Did you hear Atobe's challenge?"

Horio and Katsuo stared at each other. "Yamabuki has Momo-chan senpai's walkie-talkie!"

Inui took the device from the freshman and spoke into it. "Sengoku Kiyosumi? This is Inui from Seigaku. I assume you know what Atobe is trying to do."

"I guess so. By the way, where are the girls? Were we supposed to bring our own to trade or—" More static noise, and a voice telling him to stop being crude. "Ah, Inui? This is Minami. I apologize for my vice captain, but we'd _all_ like to know what exactly is going on here. You said that there would be a battle with penalties…?"

"Penalties?" Horio looked at his friends doubtfully. "We didn't hear anything about that."

Ryoma was watching the data man closely, but then at the word 'penalties', something in his mind clicked. At the same time, Eiji's eyes widened and Oishi stiffened.

"Penalties… that means—"

Inui's glasses flashed as he said, "Yes, I have brought the punishment for the losing side. As for the battle itself, one of the main challengers has still not arrived yet, so I don't know if the battle has officially started or not."

Takashi had been conversing easily with Tetsu and asking how the latter's tennis was doing, but at the mention of penalties he turned pale. "Wait, don't tell me… Inui is still making those... those _drinks_!" All those who had tasted it and understood its power just gave him a 'what do you think' look.

"Anyways," chimed in Sengoku's voice, "we should get going to the main battlefield, ne?"

"True, that's where the crucial battle is being held," mused Inui. Eiji had to restrain himself from yelling Inui's ear off that he'd been saying that for the past half hour.

"Maybe this is against the rules or something," began Minami, "but at this point I don't think it really matters which side a team is on. Why don't Seigaku, Fudomine and Yamabuki join forces?"

Inui looked thoughtful. "Well, I see no harm in that—"

"No!" Everyone turned in surprise as Kachiro, Horio and Katsuo stood up. Their expressions were fierce and unyielding. "Sengoku-san is the vilest of all evils! Momo-chan senpai and everyone risked their lives in order to protect Tachibana-san and the rest of the female race from manipulators like Sengoku-san! We will not disgrace their efforts and join the enemy!"

"Eh? I'm evil?" Sengoku's voice was more curious than incredulous. "Oi, is that what you were trying to say, Omoshiro-kun?" There was a very faint muffled sound, as if someone's mouth was covered.

"Huh?" Oishi blinked in concern. "Is Momo okay?" He turned to the trio freshmen demanding, "Why is Sengoku evil?"

Katsuo had a disapproving frown on his face as he said, "Sengoku-san is the reason why Momo-chan senpai and Kamio-san declared war. He tricked Tachibana An into becoming his girlfriend!"

There was a thunderstruck silence. Then, Eiji, Oishi and Takashi articulated in unison, "He did _what_?"

"I did _what_?"

Kachiro nodded gravely. "That's why we're here. For Tachibana-san's sake, we are trying to sabotage their date and make her see what kind of person he really is!"

"Loyalty to their senpai-tachi…" muttered Inui as he jotted down in his notebook. "A double date... with Kajimoto?"

Sengoku's voice was tinged with mystification but firm, "Sorry, but I'm not that lucky. I am currently single and very much available for any lovely lady who would like—ow! Careful buchou, that's my playing arm. Eh, though I wouldn't mind going out with her, she's not my girlfriend. Yet." A muffled voice in the background raged at this.

Oishi looked relieved. "Well, that settles it, then. This battle was all for nothing!"

Now that the initial shock had passed, Eiji felt the impatience biting away at him again and he insisted, "But we don't know for sure until we go there and _see for ourselves_ nya! The enemy will attack us next if we keep sitting around like ducks nya!"

Horio shook his head empathetically, his face showing more determinism than anybody had seen on him. "I heard it with my own ears. Ryuzaki was talking to An-san on the phone, and she said she was going out with Sengoku-san today at the mall! If that wasn't true, then why would he be here?" Inui, Takashi and Tetsu nodded at the logic of the boy's words.

Ryoma blinked. For all this nonsense and know-it-all attitude, Horio could say something intelligent once in a while.

But Sengoku countered, "If I were really on a date with An-chan, then I would be eating lunch at a restaurant right now, not talking to you via walkie-talkie on the second floor balcony." Another voice in the background bawled at him for calling her name so affectionately. It seemed the gags were untied.

Everyone fell silent at this new line of logic, realizing that perhaps what they previously believed about the battle had been wrong. Inui was frowning in concentration as he said, "That is true. I thought something was strange when An-san arrived with Fuji and the other girls."

Those who didn't know this jerked in surprise. "_Fuji_?"

Inui continued, "We should probably go to the flower shop and confirm this with An-san. With or without Tezuka. Perhaps the battle between the schools has nothing to do with him. Maybe."

"But that means," Oishi gestured with his hands, "we have to go through _that_." At 'that' they all knew he meant the loud and violent-sounding fray over in front of the flower shop.

Minami spoke up again, "We'd probably have to face it sooner or later. Might as well go head-first." He seemed to accept the fact that the team lunch-outing would not be settled until the battle was fought and over with.

After a moment Inui nodded. "Then let's go."

Eiji could barely contain himself as he jumped into the air. "Ya-_hooo__i_!"

"Wait," Oishi said suddenly. Everybody looked at him, startled. He ordered into the walkie-talkie, "You have to bring Momo, Kamio and everyone else with you."

There was a static sigh before Sengoku consented, "Fine. Muromachi, Taichi, untie them. We're moving out."

Wide, eager eyes watched, waiting until Oishi turned the device off. "…Well?" Eiji prompted excitedly.

Oishi grinned and nodded. "Let's go!"

Ryoma looked up. "Oi."

Eiji was about to burst into tears. "What is it _this_ _time_, nya?"

Ryoma was looking at the empty spot next to him, where a certain loud redhead had been standing.

"Where's jungle boy?"

There was the sound of distant yells, scuffling and raining plastic. A familiar voice bellowed, "Toyama Kintarou! Get back here! I, Aoi Kentarou, challenge you!"

"Rokkaku, assemble!"

Everybody exchanged glances before rushing out of the hideout. As they ran, Tetsu nudged Takashi and asked curiously, "What's this 'penalty'?"

And was startled by a unison reply, "You don't want to know."

* * *

"Oh? So this is how you did it."

Atobe didn't need to turn in his great throne of a wheel chair to see the feared trickster of Rikkai Dai entering the security room. "Of course," he said haughtily, staring at the screens, "Ore-sama is always one step above his adversary." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Niou bent over a panel of complicated-looking switches interestedly. "And Ore-sama will not pay for any damage you cause in this room. It would hardly be worth the effort."

Niou wasn't fazed as he remarked, "If you were always a step above I wouldn't be here, would I? Your forces are too weak." He waved at the groggy tennis players slumped against the wall to point out his statement. Atobe merely smirked.

"How do you know Ore-sama didn't let you come here on his own accord? What if you fell into Ore-sama's trap, anh?" The captain raised his hand in a familiar snapping motion, when suddenly a flicker of movement in one of the center screens caught his attention. A fresh team came running toward the flower shop, despite the overwhelming onslaught of various arsenals. Seigaku and Fudomine had combined forces with Yamabuki and were battling Rikkai Dai and Shitenhouji from the west side.

Atobe was slightly intrigued when he recognized another brand new group with a single lady in the middle. "Isn't that Rokkaku Chuu? Ore-sama didn't know that they were challenging Tezuka as well."

Which brought him back to the main focus. _Where was Tezuka?_

His eyes snapped back to the flower shop and he stared at the 'Closed' sign as realization struck him. He felt disgusted with himself. Really, of all things, this should have been the _first_ thing he thought of.

As if he could hear his thoughts, Niou smirked and remarked, "I heard a girl named Ryuzaki Sakuno is in that flower shop. It's been closed ever since we got here."

Atobe snapped his fingers. Out of the shadows something moved, and Kabaji slowly came into the light of the screens. Niou was slightly startled. His hand strayed toward his pocket, just in case Atobe ordered the big guy to do something threatening.

"Kabaji."

"Ossu."

"Get Jirou. We're going."

"Ossu."

As the captain stood and made his way to the door, he paused beside the trickster and stated, "Ore-sama was serious about not paying for any damages." He continued walking out of the room, with Kabaji following (Jirou was sleeping over his shoulder).

Alone in the security room with two semi-conscious victims, Niou smiled.

It was time for him to make his move.

**End Part 7**

* * *

A/N: Here's Part 7! And now things are really rolling along, right? Hopefully I'm not dragging things out. In that case, should I speed things up? Hm.

Make way for Rokkaku! Along with Fuji Yumiko! But Kajimoto and Akisa can't go on their date yet... and Niou takes control of the security room. Uh oh.

Oh, and please don't attempt to pull off a battle like this fic in a real mall. I doubt everybody has an Atobe to take care of things. XD

Well, I've got nothing else to say. Thank you so very much for taking time to read. I hope it was worth your while.

* * *


	8. Part 8: Miyuki

* * *

**Chapter 8: _Miyuki _(.x.****Revanche.x.****Return of Tezuka.x.****Reunion**** Part 1.x.)**

* * *

She tapped her finger against folded arms, glancing at the slim watch every few taps or so. Her old cap didn't hide the impatience in her eyes. Every muscle in her body was stiff, and an aura of displeasure emitted from her.

The tall blond glanced amusedly at this display of annoyance. "Patience, Miyuki."

"He's late," she growled.

"He's busy," their other companion reminded calmly.

"No, he's _late_. An hour late."

"Maybe he forgot," suggested the blond. He checked his own watch, remarking, "Akira was supposed to call me five minutes ago."

Miyuki stomped her foot, knowing it looked childish. But she was unhappy. "I told him last night! There's no way Onii-chan could forget so soon, no matter how dumb he can be!"

A hand fell on her shoulder, and she looked up at the stern, bespectacled tennis captain of Seigaku. He was emotionless as always, but his grip calmed her down a little.

She sighed, "Sorry, Dorobo Onii-chan. Kippei-nii."

"Kippei-nii" waved it off. Tezuka removed his hand and stated, "You said that he was busy with school work last night."

"Yeah," she sighed again, the tension seeping out of her until she was almost exhausted. "He's been working so hard on those stupid exams that sometimes he doesn't even sleep. I think he drooled on Shiraishi-san's textbook, because Shiraishi-san made him pay for it. But how did he know it wasn't his _own_ drool? What if he fell asleep on it and drooled without knowing? Hey, I bet he doesn't think he drools, because he's so _cool_ and popular. Just 'cuz Onii-chan has messy hair and looks like a hermit doesn't mean he isn't cool too! Looks can be very deceiving. Ne, Dorobo Onii-chan, I bet you didn't know I was such a great tennis player when we first met. And I thought _you_ were an amateur. But that turned out to be way wrong, so it just proves you can't judge a book by its cover... For example, even though you don't look like it, I bet Dorobo Onii-chan drools _and_ snores in his sleep! You probably sleepwalk too. And talk. And sing. And…"

Tezuka cleared his throat and reminded her, "Your brother's exams." She blinked.

"Oh yeah." Pulling herself together, she concluded darkly, "The stupid exam people should pay for the book and not Onii-chan."

"Those stupid exams will determine his future plans after high school." Tachibana didn't bother looking up from his cell phone as he said that.

She wrinkled her nose, "That's why I called you guys to come today. Right now Onii-chan needs to be surrounded by his friends, not stuff that will determine his future. The tennis team doesn't exactly help since everybody else is studying and drooling too." Her features darkened. "He said he'd be back from that 'excursion' really soon but it's been an hour now. And he won't answer his stupid pho—"

A ringtone suddenly sounded, making Tachibana quickly flip open his cell phone. But it turned out to be Tezuka's phone instead. The austere captain reached into his pocket.

"Hello?"

There was a short pause, after which he wordlessly hung up. "Inui again?" said Tachibana knowingly as Tezuka put his phone back in his pocket.

Despite her mood Miyuki asked curiously, "Isn't this the fifth time? What does he want?"

"I don't want to know."

The ringtone sounded again, and Tachibana smirked. "Persistent, isn't he?"

Tezuka looked at him. "It's yours."

The blond blinked. "Ah. It must be Akira." He held the phone to his ear. "Akira? How is the mission—?" A surprised pause, then, "_Chitose_?"

As Tezuka wondered what the mission was, Miyuki straightened indignantly, "_Now_ he calls back? And why didn't he call me?"

Tachibana turned to them with a bemused look. "Here," he handed the phone to Tezuka, who took it warily. "He wants to talk to you."

"…Hello?"

_"Ah, Tezuka.__ I didn't know you were with __Kippei__. Everyone seems to be looking for you." _In the background there was a hullabaloo, and Chitose sounded like he was in a hurry. _"It's literally a battlefield here. When do you think you'll come—?"_

Tezuka handed the phone back to Tachibana, who said hesitantly, "Chitose? Yes, that was Tezuka…"

Miyuki glanced from the phone to Tezuka. "What did Onii-chan say?" The stoic captain had a slightly pained look and opened his mouth to answer.

"WHAT?" They snapped their attention to Tachibana, who continued incredulously, "Tennis teams from all over Japan are battling in the middle of the mall with An as the _prize_?"

Miyuki's jaw dropped. Tezuka stared at the blond.

"Seigaku and Yamabuki? Atobe? Rikkai Dai? Chitose. Where's An?"

So Chitose was in the same place as Inui. As was Atobe. And the rest of Japan. Tezuka had felt something niggling in his mind for a while, something astoundingly familiar like déj vu, and now that feeling just increased. It was ominous and growing stronger. What was it…?

He turned to see Miyuki surrounded by an aura similar to a black flame. The cap failed to shield the murderous light in her eyes as she forced out, "Onii-chan… has been fighting over girls this entire time?" She snarled, "_Girls_?"

Tezuka wisely stepped away, right into Tachibana's circle of rage. Surrounded by red flames, Fudomine's captain looked ready to burst into _Saiyan_ mode and fly to the mall where he could beat any male within five centimeters of An. (His hair was already blond so he was half way there.)

It was rather frightening. _Muga__ no __Kyouchi_ had nothing on them.

Despite the way he was clutching it, Tachibana calmly said into the phone, "Remember, no one touches An, nobody gets hurt. Maybe." The phone snapped shut.

Miyuki didn't look at the blond. "Just so you know, Kippei-nii, Onii-chan is mine."

Tachibana broke into a feral smile that scared a small boy passing by, "Fine. I take care of everyone else."

"They're dead," she agreed happily, and they marched towards the bus stop with a small bounce in their step.

Tezuka wondered if he should just go home and forget what just happened (it's not like he could possibly save anyone), but then Miyuki and Tachibana turned to look at him and he knew he didn't have a choice.

* * *

It was like an intense snowball fight. Or paintball. Or laser tag. Or sheer madness.

Risai contemplated breaking for it and running to the flower shop. What were the chances of getting hit by those crazy boys? So _what_ if the arsenal were being launched with devastating accuracy and wild testosterone-driven strength? She could survive with a few bruises and broken bones. But the flower shop's sponsorship, not to mention her most stable job, would not. She sighed. If only she'd brought her cell phone out with her.

Akisa, Kajimoto, Sarisa, Marui and Jackal chose (wisely) not to join. They sat far from the battle, deep in conversation. Nanako was a little ways from them, alternately talking in her phone and waving it in the air. It was deceptively peaceful on their side.

Risai sighed. What was she waiting for? All she had to do was sprint to the flower shop, open the doors, and then her job would be half way done. It was that simple. She could call the sponsor representative and properly cancel the appointment. Her boss wouldn't be happy about it, but it was better than if the representative tread unknowingly in the middle of the battlefield and was lost forever. Risai would kiss her florist internship goodbye.

Deciding to break for it, she got into a ready position. Her sprint time was far behind Marui's, but she didn't care. Keeping her eyes on the goal, she lowered herself like the athletes she saw on TV, ignoring the flying objects that she'd no doubt get a better view of in a matter of seconds, and—

"You won't make it."

Startled, her concentration broke and she turned to look at Yagyuu, who smiled at her. She asked, "Why not?" She already knew why, of course, but she was just annoyed that her momentum was gone.

Yagyuu pushed his glasses up and remarked, "I heard that the cause of this battle was Ryuzaki Sakuno."

She blinked at him. "Sakuno?" It was hard not to remember the pigtail girl, and she mused, "That's funny. And she's only ten feet away from them." Then she turned serious. "I'm going. I don't care about this game, I have a job to keep and a business to save—"

A hand gripped her arm and Yagyuu asked in surprise, "_Where_ is Ryuzaki Sakuno?"

She blinked at him and said matter-of-factly, "She's sleeping in the flower shop. With Syusuke." That guy was probably wondering why she wasn't coming back by now.

It was like a thunderbolt had struck him. Yagyuu blinked, "Sleeping? With Ryuzaki Sakuno? _Fuji Syusuke_?"

Risai nodded absently and didn't notice when his hand slipped. She added reassuringly, "Oh, but they're not dating. I asked him."

That was probably even worse. "Oh."

"But I can't say the same for An. Or Tomoka." She made a face. "Kaoru wouldn't be too happy about that, since he… ahem. Besides, Syusuke isn't the kind of person to two-time anyone, right?"

"Right," he echoed.

She glanced at her watch, getting frustrated again. "The sponsor probably left. That stupid announcement screwed over everyone. And I can't get the flower shop open if this fight doesn't—yes?"

"I'm sorry, but could you tell me about these girls in the flower shop? I recognize their names, so…"

She shrugged, not caring that he didn't let go of her wrist. "Sure. I don't know them too well, but Tomoka—I forgot her last name—is in love with Kaoru. Oh, you probably know him. He's on the Seigaku tennis team with Ryoma and…"

* * *

Yumiko never knew running in heels could be so much fun. Then again, she was used to wearing heels, so the experience was probably less painful than if it were any other woman.

But to run in heels with a bunch of high school boys in the middle of an empty mall? It was a dream. A weird dream. And she loved it.

"Buchou! Bu—Aoi! Wait up!"

"Oi, he's not listening."

"What are Seigaku, Fudomine, Yamabuki and that jungle boy doing here?"

"Wouldn't we all like to know."

Saeki glanced concernedly at her. "Yumiko-san? Are you okay? We don't have to run." In fact, he didn't know why they were running at all. They should just stop.

She smiled and shook her head, "I need the exercise, Saeki-kun." Said the woman with the body of a model.

Ryou held onto his cap as they ran, asking, "What's that up ahead? There seems to be something going on…"

"Well that's obvious, you can hear the screaming from across the mall."

"Aoi! Slow _down_, you're going to crash!"

"Where's the flower shop?" Itsuko asked.

Yumiko peered ahead, "It should be around here." And she almost stumbled, but fortunately, Saeki grabbed her arm. She laughed, "Thanks. I guess I should practice more."

Running in heels? Saeki didn't think she needed to do anything of the sort, and he firmly kept his hold on her arm. "Yumiko-san, you can hold onto me if you really want to keep running."

She beamed, "Thank you."

"Pfft. A young man should just—" Amane's pun was cut off by a speeding plastic ball, followed by a sprinkle of spit wads. He sank like stone. It took everyone a couple seconds to register what had just happened.

"Davide! What the—" Kurobane barely dodged a small water balloon as if soared over his head. It exploded on the floor behind him, splashing water everywhere. Enraged yells and cries soon followed.

"Attack!"

"Enemy of all innocent girls!"

"Stay away from An-chan!"

Ryou spotted the camouflaged outfits and various weapons first, and blinked, "Are they filming a movie?"

From a quick glance Saeki could make out a line of Seigaku, Fudomine and Yamabuki members, all aiming BB guns and slingshots at the new arrivals. He quickly concluded that it was not a movie and that for some reason the tennis teams-turned-military decided to go crazy, and ordered loudly, "Everyone, behind the pillars! Somebody grab Aoi!" He led a bemused Yumiko to the shelter, just in time to avoid the water balloons.

"Isn't 'An-chan' Tachibana-imotou?" Kurobane said aloud. "We don't have anything to do with her. So why?"

"Why?" Itsuko questioned instead, "Why were they aiming at Yumiko-san?"

Yumiko blinked. "They were?"

"Maybe they thought you were An-san."

"But that doesn't make sense. They don't look anything alike."

Kurobane propped the dazed pun-ster against the column and demanded, "Are they crazy? If the authorities see this they're not getting off lightly. In fact, they're probably not getting off at all."

Ryou agreed. "But where is everybody? This whole part of the mall is empty—it's like it was rented out."

"So they could mess up the whole place? That's ridiculous!"

Aoi didn't care much for the consequences so long as there was a challenge and fiery spirit, "Come on, everybody! Where's the teamwork? This is a good-will battle with our rivals! We must rise up!"

"I don't think it's that," muttered Saeki. He turned to the eldest Fuji and apologized, "I'm sorry, Yumiko-san. The flower shop is up ahead, but…" But there's a bunch of crazy high school boys playing war right in front of it, hung un-said in the air.

She merely smiled, "Don't worry about it. I still have another ten minutes to spare. Maybe they'll stop soon."

"Or maybe," Kurobane suddenly began, "we can end it sooner." He was eyeing the neon and plastic balls that littered the floor.

Ryou jerked his head. "What? You mean, retaliate?" Saeki realized what he was getting at and straightened decisively.

"We're going to drive them back."

Aoi suddenly yelled, "Oh wow! I see Hyotei and St. Rudolph! And is that Sanada-san's cap?"

"That's Echizen Ryoma."

"No, it's Rikkai Dai! Oh! I see Chitose-san talking on the phone!"

"Buchou. I think you should get your eyes checked."

However Yumiko blinked in surprise, "Is that Yuuta? Yuuta!" She stepped out from the pillar and waved, calling, "Yuuta, it's Nee-san!" Saeki and Itsuko pulled her back before she could get hit by the answering barrage of arsenal. "My, I don't think he saw me." She didn't seem disturbed by the close call in the least.

But Saeki had had enough. He repeated, "We're going to retaliate. I don't care if it's a game or a movie, this is going too far. Aoi!"

The young captain gave a salute. "Right behind you, Saeki-san!"

* * *

Horio could honestly say he was scared for his life. As he chucked at the enemies half-heartedly, at his side, two juggernauts (formerly known as Momoshiro and Kamio) hurled water balloons, slung plastic and neon balls, and shot BB guns like mad beasts. They seemed to have forgotten the very purpose for this battle.

"AHAHAHAHA! TAKE THAT!"

"EAT THIS, YOU WOMANIZERS!"

Even Inui kept a large distance from them while he took notes of the battle. He said without looking up, "Aren't you going to join them, Echizen?"

Ryoma didn't bother opening his eyes, "Nah."

"Then can I borrow your cell phone?"

Probably going to call Tezuka again. Ryoma didn't care. "Sure." He reached into his pocket and handed the phone to Inui, who took it.

"You missed eleven calls."

At this Ryoma looked up and frowned. Who would call him so many times? And wasn't his phone on volume? As if he could read his mind, Inui stated, "It was on silent. Ryuzaki-sensei called you once. Your cousin called you ten times." He handed the phone back, while Ryoma wondered how in the world Inui knew his cousin.

Sengoku rushed past them and announced excitedly, "Guess what I just heard? An-chan is in the flower shop and she's sleeping with Fuji Syusuke!" Apparently, Sengoku had no interest in getting out of the mall alive.

Neither, it seemed, did anybody else. Muromachi replied with a touch of awe, "Really? No wonder Fuji-san is called a genius." Inui and Horio winced.

Momoshiro and Kamio froze.

An eerie stillness fell on those two. Even Shinji kept his comments to himself, preferring a whole, relatively intact body.

Ryoma was calling back Nanako, oblivious to what was going on less than ten feet behind him. "Ah, it's me. I'm at the flower shop…"

Kachiro suddenly spotted Horio and called, "Horio-kun, where are you going?"

Horio screeched back, "Run! Run if you want to live!" His friends looked at each other, wondering what had gotten into their friend suddenly.

Something was bothering Dan Taichi. He looked around in the middle of the fight to see where that murderous, almost inhuman aura was coming from, and nearly got nailed in the head by a water balloon. "Hold on a sec!" he barked irritably at St. Rudolph's Atsushi, who actually stopped mid-throw in surprise. Dan searched the tennis players closest to him, but none of them seemed to emit any deadly aura. Hopefully it was just his imagination.

And then, it echoed across the mall to Choutarou and the piano, all the way up to the third floor where Jyosei Shonan was busy fighting a different battle called Shopping and Clearance Sales. Even in the security room a certain occupant winced and had to lower the volume. Everyone heard it. The sound was piercing and blood-chilling and struck you to the core.

"_**R**__**RR**__**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHH**_"

"…Nanako, did you hear that? Yeah, that's where I am."

* * *

Sitting behind the shelter of a large pillar with Kabaji standing on guard and Jirou sleeping at his feet, Atobe was scheming. Or rather, he was visualizing the moment he triumphed over his eternal rival.

He'd found foldable tables and ordered the teams to use them as a mini-fort. Hyotei and St. Rudolph were surrounded by Rikkai Dai and Shitenhouji on one side and Seigaku, Fudomine and Yamabuki on the other, and the flower shop was still too far to reach. Atobe was convinced that Tezuka Kunimitsu was in that flower shop with Ryuzaki Sakuno, waiting to challenge the Hyotei captain to a match. So, without thinking about the possibility that Tezuka wasn't even _in_ the mall, Atobe schemed.

"Oi, Atobe," Shishido appeared behind the pillar, addressing his captain gruffly. The Dash specialist was nearly unrecognizable what with the goo and spit wads smeared all over, and his hat was missing. He looked very unhappy, to say the least.

Atobe glared at the disruption, "What do you want? Is the battle over yet? Ore-sama is thinking—" A drop of water made him jerk, and he saw that Shishido was as wet as a dishrag, courtesy of the water balloons. The glare intensified, "You are defiling Ore-sama with your state. Take yourself away!"

Shishido didn't take himself away and instead snapped, "Atobe, we've been fighting nonstop for an hour. Will you use your almighty brain and _think_ _faster_?"

The captain closed his eyes and smirked, not bothered at all by his small outburst, and said, "No need to worry. I've already thought of a plan. Be awed by the sight of—"

"Atobe."

"—Ore-sama's brilliance. First, we'll get closer to our target, which is the flower shop—"

"Atobe, this is important." Yuushi appeared next to Shishido, looking quite immaculate compared to the latter, for obvious reasons. He went on before the captain could give him a heavy dose of royal irritation, "Someone came out of the shop. And it's not Tezuka."

"Who is it?"

Before Yuushi could reply, there was a collective lull in the fighting behind the pillar. A stunned silence rang for a moment, and then—

"_AN-CHAN_!"

* * *

"Has anyone seen Chitose?" asked Shiraishi as he took a break from the fighting and went to where Akisa, Kajimoto, Sarisa, Marui and Jackal were sitting. He took a sip from his water bottle, though he didn't look exhausted at all. Akisa wondered if it was possible to be completely soaked and thirsty at the same time.

Heads shook and Marui asked through a bubble, "I was wondering, why's Shitenhouji all the way out here? You guys didn't know about the battle, right?"

"One of our teammates is supposed to be here, so we followed him," explained Shiraishi. "Since he's the youngest, he's our responsibility. I guess that makes us his babysitters." He would have sighed, but instead he finished the water bottle and tossed it into the trash can.

Rikkai Dai's self-proclaimed genius elbowed his doubles partner and snickered, "Hey, you have the same job as them." The Brazilian did not look amused.

Sarisa asked, "What's your teammate like?"

"A wild jungle boy," came the dry response. "He's got incredible talent and more energy than the world can handle. Once he's got his mind set, there's no stopping him. And now all he ever thinks about is playing against Koshimae." He smirked, "That's Kintarou for you."

Kajimoto remarked knowingly, "Yet his strength is essential to the team." Shiraishi didn't need to answer, or rather, he didn't have the chance to.

Akisa gasped, "Oh—Koshimae! You mean Kin-chan, right? He has bright red hair and he's really talkative?" Everyone's attention snapped to her.

Shiraishi straightened, "You met him? Today?"

Kajimoto blinked in realization and asked, "Was he the reason you were late?"

She nodded, "I met him on my way to the flower shop. But he ran off when he saw Koshimae."

Just then, Nanako ran up to them, holding a phone by her ear as she told Shiraishi hurriedly, "Ryoma-san says he met Kintarou-san, but then Kintarou-san left and now Ryoma-san is in the middle of a battle—I'm sorry, what? Ryoma-san—" Nanako walked away, leaving the group to look at each other.

"So," Marui broke the silence, "I wonder how many people Niou got by now."

"Niou… san?" Akisa frowned.

"He says he's in the enemy's headquarters," Yagyuu informed as he and Risai approached the group, the latter looking somewhat dejected.

At the same time Marui answered her, "Niou is Rikkai Dai's Trickster. Nobody can pull one over him, unless they're first year girls by the name of Osakada Tomoka." He exchanged glances with Jackal, who suppressed a smirk.

"What does he have to do with Tomoka?" demanded Risai, just as Akisa repeated, "Trickster?"

"He can manipulate minds and trick people by disguising himself, to a certain extent," replied Jackal as Yagyuu snapped uncharacteristically at Risai's question, "Nothing!"

Marui added, "You can't miss him. He's got light blue hair and a scary smile. He's scary."

At the same time Kajimoto pointed, "There's Chitose." Shiraishi turned to see Chitose near the flower shop, talking on his phone.

And last but not least, the flower shop door opened.

* * *

Fuji Syusuke decided to go out and investigate what the heck was going on after he heard the curdling scream (everyone heard it). By then he'd downed at least five cups of tea, so he needed to go to the restroom as well. He figured it wouldn't hurt to leave the girls unattended for a couple of minutes, since they were sleeping and needed the rest.

A yawn and stirring made him pause as he was about to open the door, and he saw An sitting up. He smiled, "I'm going out for a quick breather. If Sakuno-chan or Tomoka-chan wakes up, tell them I'll be back in a few minutes."

"I'm going with you," she said hastily, getting out of the couch. "I need some fresh air." The flower shop was overwhelming of florescence, and it was starting to make her feel stuffy.

"Sure," Syusuke nodded and opened the door.

He didn't take more than a few steps before there was an indiscernible roar of fury that sounded like, "FUJI!" and a water balloon and neon ball shot straight at him. It was almost too fast for the human eye to follow, and for a second it looked like Syusuke's face was a goner.

But Fuji Syusuke was not a genius for nothing. Azure eyes flashed and he quickly crouched out of the path of the missiles, dodging them in the nick of time.

Unfortunately.

Still blinking the sleep from her eyes, Tachibana An was right behind Syusuke when he ducked and the objects nailed her in the head. She fell to the floor without a sound.

An unearthly silence.

Everybody, even Sanada, stared at the prone girl, then at Fuji Syusuke, then at Momoshiro and Kamio, who were still frozen in throwing motions. Their mouths opened and closed like fish. Then—

"_AN-CHAN_!"

And to complete the scene, Tachibana arrived just in time to see his precious sister hit the floor. He froze. Then something inside of him finally snapped.

"_What the hell is going on here_?"

His voice set everything back into motion. There was a chaotic scramble as everybody began to move and talk at the same time. Tennis players were knocked aside like bowling pins as Momoshiro and Kamio sprinted toward An at neck breaking speed, Tachibana hot on their heels. Risai and Chitose reached her before them, but Syusuke beat them all as he lifted An in his arms.

"Over here," Akisa waved them to a bench. Kajimoto got Marui and Jackal to lend their jackets as a cushion on the hard wood, and Risai deftly took the pins from An's hair. They laid An carefully down as Yukimura helpfully retrieved a damp cloth, which Sarisa used to clean the goo off. Tachibana unzipped his own jacket and covered his sister with it.

After a quick check, Risai informed them,"She's breathing. It was only a shock—she'll come around." Everyone sighed in relief.

That was all Tachibana needed to hear. He turned slowly on Momoshiro and Kamio and stated, "You have five seconds."

They blinked, wondering if he was serious. When he smiled they realized he was _very_ serious.

"W-Wait, we can explain—"

"Time's up."

They ran.

Chitose suddenly sighed in relief. Kajimoto gave him an odd look. The former Kyuushu player grinned shamelessly, "I'm safe." Indeed. Cowards lived to see another day.

Meanwhile, another commotion was happening, because Tezuka and Miyuki arrived shortly after Tachibana. There was a mad dash to get to the Seigaku captain. Atobe was in the lead, with Sanada and Kabaji not far behind. Inui approached from the other end, along with Kirihara and Aoi. Tezuka took one look at all this and glanced longingly back at the exit, as if wishing he could run for it. Of course, Tezuka never ran away. (It was too late for that anyhow.) Miyuki was staring at the sadly beaten walls and floor of what was clearly once part of a nice mall.

Atobe smirked as if he hadn't been waiting in said mall for an hour. "You just arrived, Tezuka? Ore-sama wondered why you didn't show yourself, but you were testing us all along. As expected of Ore-sama's greatest rival—"

"Tezuka, what is the purpose behind your secret alliance with Hyotei?"

"Hey, Tezuka-_san_, can I have a match with you? C'mon, just one set or two. Or six."

"Tezuka, why did you hang up on me? Was it because you were on a date with your girlfriend—"

"O-oi! I'm not his girlfriend, you data-freak! My name is Miyuki and I'm—"

"Tezuka-san, it's so great seeing you face-to-face like this! I'm a captain too, but somehow—"

"—if you wanted to challenge Ore-sama—"

"—listening to me? My name is—"

"—let's have a match!"

Tezuka closed his eyes. When the voices didn't disappear, he decided he would have to speak, if only to clear the misunderstanding. He waited for a slight pause and opened his mouth to say, "There isn't a challenge or an alliance. I have no idea what you all are talking about." Like that.

"There is too!" shot back Kirihara, ignoring the glares Atobe and Sanada gave him. "I heard it from that one girl on the bus—what was her name? Osaka? Sakura? Tomato? Uh—"

"Osakada Tomoka," corrected Yukimura as he arrived beside his kohai, calm smile present on his face. "Hello Tezuka."

Tezuka blinked at him, wondering why his rivals, all top tennis players of the finest caliber at that, were meeting in the mall like it was totally normal. And why was he the only one who had not known about this? How did he miss it? When had he let his guard down…?

"Osakada Tomoka," mumbled Inui as he scribbled in his notebook. Aoi tried to see what he was writing but failed. "First year, best friends with Ryuzaki Sakuno…"

Everybody was so caught up with the mention of Osakada Tomoka that they didn't hear Atobe trying to get Tezuka's attention at least five times. The Hyotei captain was not pleased at being ignored, and he finally resorted to raising his voice.

"Tezuka, I'm talking to you!" That got everybody's attention. Atobe gave them a haughty stare before continuing, "Forget these commoners—they are of little matter right now. We must not postpone our business. Ah, Kabaji?"

Kabaji took a moment to find his voice. "O-ossu."

"I disagree," injected Yukimura smoothly, and everybody turned to stare at him. "Our matter is just as important as yours, Atobe." Sanada wondered if even the esteemed captain of Rikkai Dai could make an impression in the diva's impenetrable and inflated head, but then reasoned that Yukimura could hold his own.

All eyes turned back to Atobe. He took a moment to look at Rikkai Dai's captain narrowly as Yukimura gazed back calmly. A long, awkward staring match ensued, of which Tezuka unhappily realized he was in the middle of. Before he could announce he had a dentist appointment (his escape plan), Atobe smirked.

"Ore-sama believes a match should ensue to settle this."

"Fine with me."

"But only after Ore-sama beats Tezuka."

"No."

Kirihara blinked and pointed at himself, "Eh, what about me?"

Tezuka tried not to sigh.

"Tezuka!" Oishi, along with Eiji and Ryoma (who was on the phone), ran up to their captain and gasped, "You have… to hurry… Momo… Kamio… about… to die!" Tezuka barely batted an eye, already aware of this unfortunate but inevitable fact. "You have to stop Tachibana!" cried the vice-captain.

"Not before Ore-sama plays him a match."

"Then you'll have to wait until after I talk with him, Atobe."

"I got dibs on Tezuka-san after you, Buchou!"

Tezuka didn't want to be dibbed on, but it was pointless to say anything. After all, it wasn't as if _his_ opinions mattered. Oh no.

Eiji stared at the tennis players crowding and arguing over who could talk to his captain. He wanted to tell them that Tezuka was claustrophobic, just for fun, but he also wanted to know who would win. The latter won out, so he kept quiet and watched.

"Hello? Can you hear me now?" Ryoma felt like an idiot in some kind of cell phone advertisement, but right now that wasn't important. Neither was the fact that his tennis rivals were gathered in one place and having an argument. What _was_ important was finding his cousin who had no sense of direction whatsoever… as well as Wobbly Hips. Preferably before those captains did.

Oishi's voice grew higher as he panicked, "Tachibana is going to _slaughter_ Momo! Not kill, slaughter! Torture!" Eiji patted his doubles partner distractedly but it obviously didn't help. "Tezuka, only you can stop him!"

Atobe didn't budge. "Ore-sama challenged Tezuka first."

"Oh?" Yukimura wasn't budging either. "Then kindly wait while I speak momentarily with him."

Tezuka considered his options. Sanada was ordering Kirihara to calm down, so he wasn't any help at the moment. Inui wasn't even an option, and Aoi was too excited to be useful. Kabaji was… Kabaji. Ryoma was still on the phone, and Miyuki had disappeared.

It wasn't much of an option. Saving Momoshiro it was then. He nodded at Oishi, "I'll go."

Oishi nearly cried in relief, when Eiji suddenly flapped at his arm eagerly and pointed, "Look! An-san woke up, nya! You don't need to save anyone, Tezuka!"

Yes, Tezuka agreed as the two rival captains looked at him expectantly, but somebody needed to save _him_.

* * *

Those who weren't crowding around An or Tezuka were having their own little reunion, sans the dramatics.

Yuushi raised an eyebrow at his cousin. "What brings you to this battle?"

Kenya rolled his eyes, "To see my cousin in Tokyo, what else?"

"I'm touched, despite it being a lie."

"That hurts, Yuushi. I'd never lie to you."

"Sarcasm runs in the family, huh?" Gakuto walked up to them with a smirk, "Shishido's not letting go of that billiards girl. He's pissier than Atobe on a bad hair day." Which said a lot about Shishido's mood.

"By the way, have you seen Kintarou?" Kenya searched the crowd, "We actually came here to find him—"

"So you lied," Yuushi cut in dryly.

"Of course."

St. Rudolph and Rokkaku greeted one another, mainly because Yuuta swore he saw his sister and Atsushi was looking for his brother. The twins greeted one another somewhere between Tezuka's group and An's bench with the usual inquiries about home and their mother.

Ryou queried, "Why is St. Rudolph here?" He still kept his long hair under his jacket, hiding it from view.

"Oshitari says it's a fight for Ryuzaki Sakuno," replied Atsushi, wondering why his brother was hiding his hair. "It's a love square between Tezuka, Atobe, Fuji Syusuke and Ryuzaki-san." He decided not to ask about it, but just then Saeki popped up beside them.

"Hi," he grinned, glancing surreptitiously at his teammate, "Has your brother told you the bus story yet?"

"No, what is it?" Atsushi questioned curiously, wondering if it had to do with the hair.

"What bus story?" Akazawa also wanted to know as he walked up to them. He was more wet than gooey, but he seemed happy, probably because he'd gotten back Zaizen Hikaru a good one in the face (who had been bad-mouthing St. Rudolph for their lack of discipline under their captain).

"It's nothing," Ryou said flatly, glaring at Saeki who ignored him. He retorted, "Did you guys know Saeki became a hero after rescuing Tachibana An?"

"No, we didn't," remarked Mizuki as he and Yuuta came up to them. "And if he's a hero, why is Tachibana An lying on a bench with a large bump on her head?"

"Ah, why are you here Yuuta?" Rokkaku's vice captain deftly changed the topic, pretending not to notice Ryou's knowing look.

The youngest Fuji seemed worried, "Do you know where my sister is? I thought I saw her during the battle."

Saeki blinked. "Well, she went to go to the flower shop. Maybe Syusuke knows."

Mizuki twirled his dripping locks with a smirk, "Of course my greatest rival knows." Someone bumped into him and he spared them an annoyed glare. "As I was saying—"

The person turned and they watched Sengoku break into a familiar grin, despite his battle-worn clothes.

"Yo! Floor's kind of slippery, eh? How are you guys doing? Could you tell me where those college girls are?" The battle hadn't seemed to waver his eagerness one bit.

Mizuki's eyes narrowed, "Why should we help our enemy?"

"Aw, come on! It was just a little competition—and we won anyways," reasoned Sengoku, oblivious of the growing ire of the people around him. "Don't be a sore loser and help me out, ne?"

"I'll show you sore you little—"

"Fine." Akazawa had passed the girls as he sniped Zaizen Hikaru. They were surrounding the bench where Tachibana An lay. He raised an eyebrow at the Yamabuki vice-captain, "We'll point the direction if you tell us why Yamabuki is here."

"Because we were threatened by Seigaku and Fudomine, desu!" piped up Dan as he appeared by his vice captain's side. He scowled fiercely, "And if I hadn't overheard Inui-san telling the battle plans to Oishi-san and Kikumaru-san, then they would have ambushed us. We only joined them because—"

"That's not how I heard it," Mizuki interrupted, tossing his head. "_I_ have it in my best knowledge that it was Yamabuki who provoked Seigaku and Fudomine first by stealing Tezuka's girl—"

"_What_?" Saeki and Ryou looked shocked. "Who told you that?"

"Inui Sadaharu."

Atsushi was more interested in something else. "Who's Tezuka's girl?"

Mizuki shrugged. It didn't really matter at the time.

Sengoku slapped a hand on his face and groaned, "Not _that_ again. Soon you're going to accuse me of dating Tachibana An too—"

"_What_?" Yuuta looked like he swallowed a whole egg. "Is that why her brother is…?" He knew how protective older siblings got.

Saeki was confused, "Why does everything have to do with Tachibana An?"

"But I heard she was sleeping with Fuji Syusuke, desu!" Dan said loudly. Mizuki 's eyes widened like saucers as Yuuta abruptly choked. Even Akazawa found it hard to contain his shock as he thumped his kouhai's back.

A new voice asked, "So Tachibana An is going out with Fuji Syusuke?" Yagyuu and Yanagi joined the ever-growing group, pushing past Saeki and Ryou. "Then why is he also with Ryuzaki Sakuno and Osakada Tomoka?"

Ryou felt slightly annoyed that what had started out with just his brother had turned into this.

"Interesting," murmured Inui as he also materialized, holding his notebook. "Fudomine and Seigaku went to war with Yamabuki only because An-san was dating Sengoku, but it seems the enemy was within Seigaku the entire time…"

Dan pointed at the tall data man indignantly, "Then it was Inui-san's fault Yamabuki got targeted, desu! He started it!"

Mizuki glared at them both, "Then I was lied to as well. Inui, you'd better have a good excuse for this."

At the same time Nanako, who was still on the phone, stopped beside their circle and asked, "Are you here, Ryoma-san?"

"_Aniki_?" Yuuta finally managed to cough out. Akazawa stopped dutifully pounding his back. "That's stu—Aniki wouldn't—where is he? Where's Aniki? Where's Nee-san?"

Akazawa asked Yagyuu and Yanagi why Rikkai Dai came, just as Yagyuu asked Saeki what St. Rudolph was doing here. And shouldn't somebody go tell the captains what was going on instead of interrogating Tezuka?

Sengoku managed to squeeze and slide through everyone until he reached Nanako. His grin was infectious and a flirtatious air settled about him, "Hey, Ryoma-san's not here, but maybe I can take his place—"

"Ah, Ryoma-san!" Nanako cried (completely ignoring him), and at the same time Minami clapped a hand on Sengoku's shoulder. His grip tightened when the orange-head tried to go after the blue-haired girl. "Oh no you don't. The battle's over. It's time for us to leave before things get ugly."

"What do you mean, Buchou?" inquired Dan curiously. His voice was nearly drowned by Atsushi's laughter as Saeki finally told the bus story, as well as Mizuki's indignant rant about Syusuke never telling his little brother (or him) anything. Their voices only added slightly to the increasing chaos.

Minami's face twisted, "_This_ is what I mean. Let's go." But Sengoku wiggled out of his grip. "Sengoku!"

"Sorry Buchou! But a man's got to keep his word!" Sengoku bounded off, presumably in an attempt to fulfill his manly word.

Minami gave Dan a look, "What word?"

"Sengoku-senpai is girl-crazy, desu."

A sigh. "What's new?"

"Help us!" Kyousuke and Tatsunori reached the group, bending over and wheezing, "Tachibana-san is… An-chan woke up, but he won't stop!"

Inui stopped writing and looked up, "Won't he go after Fuji next?"

"Aniki!" Yuuta's eyes widened and he broke into a run toward An's bench.

"Hold on Yuuta, that's—" Saeki, Mizuki and Akazawa swept past Inui, followed by Yagyuu, Kyousuke and Tatsunori.

"Or possibly Chitose-san, or maybe even…" The data man muttered on, oblivious of the fact that everybody was running off.

"Aren't you going?" Yanagi interrupted. His old friend smiled.

"I'm going to observe Tezuka's group first. Perhaps if I accidentally let something slip…" A shrug. "My data predicts many interesting things."

"…I never knew you would use your talents to stir up conflict. You are either very bored or very stupid to try and create a war between our captains."

The data man merely pushed up his glasses. "What are you talking about? You probably wanted to do something like this for a very long time." Yanagi didn't answer because he was already following the rest of the group. Inui allowed a smirk and headed to the arguing captains.

Ryou, Atsushi, Akazawa, Minami and Dan stared at each other. All of them knew what they wanted to do, but nobody wanted to admit it.

Surprisingly, Minami sighed, "Let's go."

It was time for the final showdown.

**End Part 8**

* * *

A/N: Let me catch my breath... Whoa. What a _crazy_ chapter. It's funny (not really) because I started out this whole story with the entire plot in mind with every single character listed and everything was going to be just peachy because I was SO sure I could keep track of everything… How wrong I was. And still am.

As for my overall thoughts on this: _almost done_! This crazy grapevine thing is finally reaching its climax (sort of) and all the pieces are coming together (hopefully). The characters are trying to understand what the heck is actually going on, and probably so are the readers. Heck, even _I'm_ trying to figure it out.

I just finished reading the PoT manga. I will temporarily ignore what happened so I won't have to go back and revise all the chapters like mad.

I'm sorry! I keep changing the characters' first and last names. I think Risai is rubbing off me. (:

Oh yeah. Welcome to your war, Tezuka. XD And Tachibana and Miyuki… Poor An. I don't know if you can really get knocked out by a speeding ball, but I suppose in this fic you can. It's okay. Momo and Kamio are overly-dramatic. And would Tachibana go wild like that? You know, like this tennis style… WILD. Hey, on a random note, I really like the cousin-rivalry between Kenya and Yuushi. On another random note, I just realized that Mori Tatsunori is pretty cute. :P I mean, just a tad.

On a not-so-random note, if there are any gaps or confusion in the story so far, **please** don't hesitate to demand what the heck happened, because most likely I missed it by a mile. And if the gap _is_ intentional, then… it is intentional. XD

Just out of curiosity, did anybody catch the triple 'R's in the chapter title up there? Does anybody even _read_ the chapter title? (I'll tell you now, I spend a _ridiculous_ amount of time thinking those titles up... might as well make it its own story)

This is the longest A/N I've written so far. I feel really bleh. But I still have to end it with the usual:

Thank you so much for taking time to read! Please come again. XD And I hope it was worth your while.

* * *


	9. Part 9: Yumiko

**Chapter 9: Final Showdown**

By xxkoffeexx

.

A/N: Here's a brief recap of what has happened so far:

+Tomoka likes Kaidoh Kaoru. People hear about it in different forms and thus, the rumors spread.

+These rumors manifest into a battle that takes place at the mall, in front of the flower shop, at 11 AM.

+Tennis teams keep arriving and join the battle. Everyone is confused.

+Battle spins out of control. Tachibana An goes down. Battle stops.

+Now everyone is trying to figure out what is going on, including the author.

If that recap was lame (because it is, sorry) then please take time to read the last chapter. Or just read the whole thing over again. (Haha...) And now, here is chapter nine. Enjoy!

.

When Kaidoh felt the tingling sensation again, he stopped jogging and wondered if his sixth sense was picking up on something. Not that he had a sixth sense, unless it came to tennis, Inui's drinks, and a freshman by the name of Osakada Tomoka.

Speaking of that girl. When did it start? When did his attention stray from the tennis court to the peripherals of his vision, a loud and vivacious girl cheering outside the fence? He didn't know when, exactly, but it didn't matter now. Not when he was in too deep.

He was tingling again and this time it felt stronger, almost like a vibration.

Maybe it was going to rain? The last time he got caught in the rain* it was because he believed what the weatherman said (partly sunny with no chance of precipitation). Ever since then, he believed in the weatherman no more. But this time he _specifically_ disobeyed the reporter's command to stay indoors or carry an umbrella. Therefore, the tingling couldn't be the weather.

The tingling slash vibration was too insistent. He couldn't keep jogging until he found out the source. Besides, the sensation was coming from not his mind, but his body. It was peculiar, because if he concentrated hard enough, the epicenter of the tingles were near his abdomen…

_Wait_. Kaidoh reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the vibrating cell phone. Inui. "Hello?" he said, trying not to feel the embarrassed flush on his face. Maybe there was a reason why Momoshiro screamed at him across the school that practice was cancelled instead of calling or texting him.

Then he froze.

"…Osakada is in danger?"

.

Nanako was relieved to be reunited with her cousin. She was relieved that he wasn't joining the crowd of tennis players (and friends) gathered around the bench that Tachibana An was occupying. She was relieved that the orange-headed young man with a disturbing twinkle in his eye had stopped stalking her. She was relieved that Sarisa had found her younger sister. She was simply relieved.

Ryoma was not so relieved.

He didn't care about the stupid fight (it had been fun, but honestly, what the heck?), he didn't care who won or lost, he didn't even care that his shirt was ruined, or that Tachibana (the blond) was terrorizing Momo-senpai. None of those things mattered.

The captains were arguing over who got to keep Ryuzaki Sakuno. According to Inui, whoever won the battle would win the girl.

His cat-shaped eyes narrowed.

Yeah. Over his dead body.

"Ryoma-san?"

He glanced at his older cousin, and his mood soured. He wasn't irritated with her, no, but there were too many guys trying to hit on her. Ryoma wasn't territorial like his father, but Nanako was Family, and no monkeys were going to touch her while he was still Seigaku's Pillar of Strength. Though technically, he was no longer the Pillar of Strength, but that wasn't the point.

"Let's go to the flower shop," he told Nanako.

She blinked. "Why?"

Ryoma tugged his cap lower. He'd overheard Inui and Yanagi say that Ryuzaki was sleeping in the flower shop, like some princess waiting to be saved from a curse. A curse of clumsiness. And he was going to save her (like a knight in shining armor) from those crazy captains (fire-breathing dragons) before they got to her, because Ryuzaki was almost-Family—and he did not mean that in a brotherly or family-like way.

Not that he was going to tell all of this to Nanako, because honestly, what the heck?

So he simply replied, "Kaa-san wants some flowers."

Well, technically, every women wanted flowers. She just hadn't ask for it yet.

Nanako nodded. "I'll help you."

Ryoma didn't really need her help, not unless she was going to help him carry a sleeping Ryuzaki out of the flower shop, which was altogether likely seeing as it was imperative that they left the mall without anyone (i.e. crazy captains) noticing. Luckily, Inui was busy talking on the phone. Now was the perfect opportunity to sneak out. It would be up to Ryoma's speed and luck to complete this mission.

"Guys usually don't know which flowers are the best," Nanako was saying. "They'll just buy a dozen roses and spout some sweet words that we really don't want to hear."

Ryoma blinked out of his thoughts. "Really?"

"Sometimes," Nanako said unapologetically. "Unless, of course, there's a ring."

Boy, he thought, his old man was wrong.

They walked quickly to the flower shop, and only two people noticed.

.

Risai, florist apprentice and matchmaker wannabe, was torn between crying over the grand piano or punching Shishido in the face. She wanted to cry because the sponsorship for the flower shop was probably ruined forever, and she would be fired, and then she couldn't pay for college, and then she would be stuck at a fast food restaurant flipping burgers. And she wanted to punch Shishido in the face because he was annoying.

On top of all this, there was a huge cluster of dangerous fangirls surrounding the piano, glaring at her.

"Why are you stalking me?" she demanded wearily. Not to the fan girls.

Choutarou was sitting on the piano stool, watching his doubles partner try to extract another pool match from the girl. It seemed Shishido's honor and pride was on the line.

"I'm not stalking you. You're running away," Shishido retorted, sounding just as tired of arguing as she was. "Listen, just play one match. One match, and we'll never have to speak to each other again."

"It's just a stupid game!"

"Then why were you playing it at the festival?" he accused.

Choutarou wondered if he should play mediator, but then she beat him to it.

"Fine."

"Fine?" Shishido and Choutarou's eyes widened.

"Fine," she repeated. "But under one condition. If I get fired from the flower shop, you have to take responsibility."

Shishido recoiled. "Why do I have to take responsibility?"

"Because I'm not going to play a stupid game with you unless you do. The only reason I played pool was to earn money. But since you're so rich you wouldn't know what it's like to need money." She glared at him. "If I get fired, _you have to take_—"

"Responsibility," he cut in. "Fine. It's a deal."

"Great," she replied dully. "Now let me find out whether I'm fired or not." She turned to go, ignoring the look on Choutarou's face that said she shouldn't have made a deal with Shishido, and then paused. Someone was running towards the mall entrance, and she squinted through the silent throng of fan girls to see who it could possibly be this time. Another crazy tennis player, that was for sure.

Then she blinked.

What was _he_ doing here?

.

"Ore-sama was challenged by Tezuka to a battle."

"That does not make sense. Akaya overheard Osakada Tomoka talking about the alliance between you and Tezuka. I confirmed it myself."

Tezuka was beginning to see a force field surrounding the Rikkai Dai and Hyotei captains, one that grew silently as the two argued with deceiving calm. He also had a bad feeling that Inui was behind all of this. He didn't know who else could spin such a ridiculous rumor into an illegitimate battle at the mall.

"Yukimura. Atobe."

The two turned to face Seigaku's captain expectantly. Tezuka paused dramatically just to be sure they were listening, and spoke.

"I never challenged anybody to a battle, Atobe. And I never said anything about an alliance with anybody, Yukimura."

When they didn't reply, he decided that they didn't hear him and repeated more slower, "I never challenged anybody to a battle, Atobe—"

"We heard."

"But that's not what Inui-san said," interrupted Gakuto, who decided sticking with the captains was a lot more interesting than the drama between the An-girl and her overprotective brother. "He said you were challenging Atobe in order to win Ryuzaki Sakuno's heart."

Yukimura looked at Tezuka, and then at Atobe. "Ryuzaki Sakuno?"

Atobe frowned, "Nonsense! Where did you hear that? Tezuka is battling on behalf of Echizen Ryoma."

"Where did _you_ hear that?" This time Kirihara chimed in, ignoring Sanada's frown.

Tezuka suddenly remembered the afternoon Atobe visited Seigaku in order to warn him about Ryoma's broken heart or something absurd. He hadn't thought about that day because it was so random and had nothing to do with him whatsoever, but now he wished he'd paid more attention back then.

The Hyotei captain sniffed. "It was not Inui, though he claimed Tezuka had sent him. Obviously, that had been a lie. No, Ore-sama heard from a reliable source that Ryuzaki Sakuno gave her heart to someone other than Echizen." Never mind that the 'reliable source' was currently off in dreamland atop of Kabaji's shoulder. "In this case, Echizen would have been heart-broken and off his game, and this would affect Tezuka as the captain. Ore-sama believed it best to warn his rival about this impending disaster, because otherwise we could not play tennis equally." At the end of his short explanation, nobody said anything save for blinking at him, and Atobe added, "Ah, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

Still no response. Akaya tousled his already messy hair and burst out, "But that Osakada girl said something different on the bus! Right, Buchou?"

Yukimura was thinking hard. What Atobe said was a little different from what Osakada Tomoka told him in the ice cream shop, but pieces were starting to fall into place. He decided. "Tezuka, I apologize on behalf of all of us. There seems to have been a major miscommunication, and you clearly have no idea about what is going on."

Tezuka refrained from pointing out that he was saying so for the past twenty minutes. There was no point in saying it now.

Atobe, not to be outdone, quickly agreed. "Ore-sama believes it wise to join the others and question Inui directly about all of this. Ah, Kabaji?"

"Right," Akaya jumped in before the giant could answer. "Let's go!"

Thus, the three captains made their way towards what was starting to look like the heart of darkness, and not necessarily in the literary sense.

.

First, she got hit by a tennis ball. Then, she agreed to go on an apology date with the popular tennis captain of her school. Then she and her date got caught up in a bizarre battle in the mall.

Akisa was fairly certain that this was not how a date ordinarily went. No matter how fake the date was.

"Irowa-san," said Kajimoto. "If you don't mind leaving your sister, could we go somewhere else? Lunch, perhaps?"

He was as poker-faced as he was at school, Akisa thought. But she didn't mind.

"Lunch sounds wonderful," she replied. "Onee-chan won't mind. What about your teammates?"

The captain had nearly forgotten about them. "They won't mind either," he assured her.

"Okay, let me grab my purse."

They walked back to the bench where Tachibana An was sitting, surrounded by concerned friends and her angry older brother. An looked completely okay, Akisa thought, though her two attackers (they were supposed to be rivals for her affection or something) looked quite exhausted and remorseful.

"We're so sorry, An-chan!"

"We didn't mean it!"

An rubbed her brow and held up a hand. "Wait. So, you started this whole war, just because you thought I was going on a date with Sengoku-san? I'm sorry, but are you out of your minds? There's no way I would ever think about going out with him—no offense, Sengoku-san—and even if I was, why did you start attacking everyone else?"

"We only attacked Hyotei and St. Rudolph," inputted Horio, cringing when the two teams glared at him. He blurted out the same things Momoshiro and Akira had been spouting an hour ago, "B-because we wanted to protect the innocent girls around the world! Atobe-san tried to ask out An-san, and Yanagisawa-san also tried to—eep!" The dark glares coming his way sharpened like a sword, and he (finally) realized the more he talked, the more his life was at risk.

Chitose raised an eyebrow from behind the safety of An's bench, away from Tachibana. However, he didn't notice the dark vibes emanating from his sister behind him. "You attacked us and Rikkai Dai," he pointed out. Horio quailed and hid behind Kachiro and Katsuo.

"That was Toyama Kintarou," corrected Inui from the edge of the group, jotting something else in his blasted notebook. "I believe he was only having 'fun' and was not aware of the situation."

"Speaking of Kintarou," spoke up Shiraishi, "where is he?"

"He's in the flower shop." Everyone turned to look at Yagyuu, who stood next to the Rikkai Dai members. "I believe Ryuzaki Sakuno and Osakada Tomoka are in there as well."

An blinked from her place on the bench and wondered just how many tennis players were gathered in one place. Seigaku, Fudomine, Yamabuki, Rikkai Dai, St. Rudolph, Hyotei, Shitenhouji, Jyosei Shonan… Was it a coincidence that they were in front of the flower shop? No, she thought not. She could see Tezuka, Atobe, Yukimura and Sanada joining the ever growing party, and felt that the balance of the tennis universe was precariously tipping over. Or maybe it was just the blow to the head that was imagining things.

"Could somebody explain what is going on?" Oishi asked desperately. "Inui said that there was going to be a battle, but Tezuka doesn't even know what's going on."

"And somebody should clean this place up," added Takashi, taking in the vandalized state of the once-clean mall. He was more worried about the mess than about the battle, and the trouble they'd be in when the authorities came. Speaking of which, where _were_ the authorities?

"Inui."

Everybody, even Yukimura and Atobe, turned to look at Tezuka, who was staring at Inui.

"Explain."

Yanagi prudently took a step away from his childhood friend, as did Yuuta and Atsushi who were nearby. The data man himself took no notice to the answer-my-question-or-suffer-the-consequences eyebeams Tezuka was sending him. "Very well," he said solemnly. "It starts with the freshman, Horio…"

"Oh not again," squeaked the freshman, Horio.

"He had apparently overheard Ryuzaki Sakuno in the bathroom that Tachibana An was going out with Sengoku Kiyosumi—"

"Oh not again," sighed Sengoku, and then blinked when Momoshiro, Akira and Tachibana (blond) simultaneously shot glares at him. "We went over this! I'm not going out with her! She rejected me herself." His turquoise eyes watered sadly at this thought and he turned to her, "Ne, won't you give me a chance to—_just kidding_. I'm sorry."

"Calm down," An told the three boys, and they immediately relaxed, although they still glared. "Horio-kun, how in the world did you hear that I was going out with Sengoku-san?"

Horio was only too eager to clear his name, and rattled off, "I heard Ryuzaki saying that you kissed an orange-haired tennis player, and that there was a date today at 11. So naturally, I thought it was Sengoku-san." He deflated at the hard stare she leveled at him, "Well, it made sense at the time."

Tezuka wondered why there was a niggling feeling disturbing him. Something about Horio's explanation was strange… Luckily, Yukimura answered for him.

"How did you overhear this in the restroom?"

Immediately, all heads turned to Horio, who stuttered like a bright tomato. "Th-the walls of the bathrooms are thin! I wasn't in the girl's restroom or anything like that! I swear!"

An rolled her eyes. Typical perverted high school boys. "Horio-kun, did it ever occur to you that we might have been talking about someone else? Maybe someone in a movie? A completely different person?"

Dan Taichi couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. "Who were you talking about, desu?" If Horio hadn't misheard anything, then he wouldn't have told Momoshiro and Akira, and then Dan wouldn't have overheard Inui talking about the ambush against Yamabuki…

"Wait," interrupted Yuushi, frowning slightly. "What does this have to do with the challenge between Seigaku and Hyotei?"

"It was a misunderstanding," Atobe informed shortly, brushing back his hair. "Ore-sama heard that Ryuzaki Sakuno was in love with someone other than Echizen, that is all."

Inui paused in his writing. "Really? Who?"

"_Inui_."

"Tezuka, I only know what I have heard," explained the data man. "And what I have heard is what Horio heard in the bathroom. From there, it was only a matter of spreading the word to St. Rudolph's Mizuki-kun and Hyotei's captain." He grinned slightly, making shivers run down people's spine. "I didn't know a few rumors would lead to such satisfying results."

Several people who had been used in his plans raised a cry, and it took a few minutes for the volume to settle. Finally, An stood on top of the bench and bellowed, "SHUT UP!"

Silence fell. "Yes, An-chan," Kamio meekly uttered.

"Thank you," said the girl. Chitose offered a hand, which she accepted gracefully, and hopped down. Miyuki glared suspiciously at her brother. "Now," An announced, "Inui-san's explanation covers almost everything I need to know. But I want to ask why Shitenhouji and Rokkaku are here."

Aoi Kentarou piped, "We've come to answer the challenge that our rivals have—" Saeki covered his captain's mouth and smiled gently.

"Hello, An-chan."

She smiled back. "Hello, Saeki-kun. It's been a while." Her brother's eyes narrowed at this new guy who dared call An so affectionately.

Saeki did not have a superb eyesight for nothing, and he quickly said, "We're here because Ojii got lost again. Have you seen him by any chance?"

Akisa, who finally found her purse, looked up. "Oh, you mean the old man with the long beard?" The Rokkaku members immediately confirmed that she was correct, and she shrugged. "I only saw him because he wanted to give me some money. Kin-chan apparently recognized him. But I don't know where he is right now. I don't know where Kin-chan went either. Sorry."

"It's all right."

"Speaking of finding people," spoke up Yuuta, "where's Nee-san?"

Syusuke's blue eyes blinked. "She's here?" Tezuka was taken aback as well, though he didn't show it.

"Yumiko-san said that she had to go to the flower shop," started Saeki.

"Why is everyone going to Risai's flower shop?" muttered Akisa. Only Kajimoto heard her.

"Then let's go to the flower shop," commanded Atobe, tired of waiting for his turn in the spotlight. He snapped his fingers, and the rest of the Hyotei team (minus Shishido and Choutarou, who weren't present) followed him towards the shop. Everybody shared looks of there-goes-the-king-again, and followed him anyways.

Akisa and Kajimoto stayed behind, and after a moment she asked, "How are they all going to fit in the shop?"

He shrugged. "Aren't you going to join them?"

"No." She gave him a wry smile. "I think Risai can handle them. Besides, we were going to have lunch."

Kajimoto paused, and then decided to take a leaf out of Wakato's book. "Then let's have lunch," he said, offering her his hand.

She took it.

.

"How romantic," Niou muttered in the security room, watching the drama display on the screens. Behind him, Kaneda and Yanagisawa had woken from the sleep powder ("It was only a combination of herbs, nothing illegal," Niou assured off-handedly) and were watching the security cameras as well.

"Are they going to cram into that tiny shop, dane?" asked Yanagisawa curiously.

The Trickster was pulling out his cell phone. "Let's find out."

"This is crazy," Kaneda muttered. "Atobe's crazy to bribe the guards out of here. What if we get arrested for breaking and entering? What if we're on the national news? My mother will kill me."

"Calm down," both Niou and Yanagisawa told him. He glared.

"Why are we still here? We should escape before the police come!"

"They won't come, dane."

"Ah, it's me," said Niou into the phone. "The plan is already in motion. He should be arriving soon…" As if on cue, there was movement in the screen showing the mall's entrance. "He's here."

Yanagisawa peered at the screen. "Why's he running like something's chasing him, dane?"

"Hey, doesn't he look familiar?" Kaneda asked instead.

Niou smirked. "That's because you know him."

"…Isn't he that snake guy from Seigaku?"

"Correct."

And then Niou reached over and pressed the electricity control button.

.

Something touched her shoulder. It was warm and firm, almost like hand.

"Ryuzaki."

She stirred.

"Ryuzaki. Wake up."

Sakuno slowly opened her eyes and blinked. Honey golden eyes stared into her own, and she wondered what kind of dream included Echizen Ryoma hovering over her face when she woke up. It was a very pleasant dream.

"Oi. Ryuzaki!"

The golden eyes were irritated now, and she blinked owlishly.

"Ryoma-kun…?"

"That's me," he replied. "Can you get up?"

She could only nod. He sighed, placed a hand under her shoulder, and helped her sit up from the sofa. Sakuno suddenly remembered how she came to be lying down, and looked around for her friends. "Where's Fuji-senpai?"

Ryoma swallowed a pang of annoyance and replied shortly, "He's outside." Honestly, the first thing that came out of her mouth had to be the genius. "Sensei called me. She was worried that you weren't picking up your phone." Again.

Sakuno stopped mid-stretch and searched for her phone, murmuring, "Oh no, oh no, Obaa-chan is going to kill me! I promised I wouldn't worry her, at least until the festival…"

"I told her you were fine."

She blinked and looked at him, too surprised to blush or stutter. "Eh? Ryoma-kun, you—Wah! Kin-chan!"

The redhead had snuck up on the two of them silently, and popped out from behind the sofa. "Koshimae! Why are you in here? Are you hiding from your captain too?"

In a manner of speaking, yes, he was. But Ryoma would rather run a hundred laps before agreeing with the wild boy. "Quit calling me that."

"Koshimae is Koshimae!"

Sakuno saw Tomoka sleeping peacefully on the other sofa, and looked around for An. What she saw were two older girls at the counter, talking quietly over cups of tea. She thought she recognized the blue-haired girl and the beautiful goddess, but she couldn't quite remember. Sakuno wondered where Risai went, and whether the sponsor had come by yet. Really, Sakuno always fell asleep at the most crucial moments.

"Ne, Sakuno-chan!" Kintarou was claiming her attention again, "You were talking about a festival, right? Is there going to be food? Delicious food, like your onigiri?" He ignored Ryoma's glare.

Sakuno blushed. "Y-yes, there's going to be lots of food."

"Can I go! Can you take me with you, Sakuno-chan?"

He was begging her so earnestly that Sakuno didn't have the heart to refuse him. "Of course I can," she smiled warmly. She didn't see Ryoma grimace, because Kintarou grabbed her hands and whooped.

Tomoka snored lightly.

Ryoma was trying not to let his irritation show, but his fists clenched. Fine. He would have to up his game and beat Kintarou. "Ryuzaki."

"Yes?"

Sakuno was startled when he leaned closer to her, gripping the sofa by her shoulder and shoving Kintarou rudely away in the process. He stared at her from underneath his hat brim.

"Will you go—"

"Sakuno-chan!"

The flower shop door opened which a jingle of chimes, and the merry group of tennis players trooped into the tiny store. An led the group, followed closely by Syusuke and Tezuka, as well as her brother. Sakuno stared as more and more people poured in, until the sofas and plants were completely surrounded by dozens of high school boys.

"Hey, keep moving!"

"Ow! Stop pushing me!"

"Dude, you just touched my—"

"Ooh. Flowers."

Ryoma sat down with a sigh as Sakuno continued goggling at the sight of Japan's most reputed tennis players jostling and elbowing each other in the quaint flower shop. She spotted a few Shitenhouji boys climb on top of the counter, Sengoku fighting his way towards the women, and Eiji trying to climb a small palm tree. Somewhere in the midst of all the pushing and shoving, Sakuno swore she heard Atobe demanding a five foot radius of space around his royal person.

Horio managed to shove his way to the middle and stared at Ryoma and Sakuno. "Echizen? How did you get in here? And why are you with Ryuzaki?"

The Ponta lover raised an eyebrow.

"He doesn't look like he has a broken heart," observed Yuushi. Gakuto snorted.

"Sakuno-chan," An said gently, "do you have anyone you love?"

Ryoma, Syusuke and Tezuka snapped to attention.

Sakuno blushed hard. "U-um, An-chan…"

"Atobe," the Rikkai Dai captain said near the door, "where did you hear about Ryuzaki-san loving someone besides Echizen?"

In a slightly muffled voice, Atobe replied plaintively, "Ore-sama heard it from Jirou." He wasn't going to risk his reputation any more than he already did, not when this was Jirou's fault. So he was going to lay all the responsibility on the sleepyhead.

Sakuno found her voice. "I-I _what_?"

"She _what_?" Ryoma stared.

Yagyuu spoke up from his position beside Tomoka's sofa, "I think we should wake up Osakada-san and Akutagawa-san. They might be able to answer our questions." There were murmurs of assent, and the boys made way for Kabaji to come to the center of the shop. He placed Jirou on the empty chair and stepped back.

Everybody stared at the two oblivious dreamers, wondering how to wake them up.

Luckily, they didn't have to.

The door slammed open.

"_Osakada_!"

.

She had to admit, Kaidoh Kaoru was one amazing guy. Especially when he was in love.

When he'd come running into the mall as if his back was on fire, she immediately knew something was wrong. She called his name, but the guy kept on running. He was so engrossed in sprinting like some James Bond action hero that he didn't notice his bandana flutter off, or that she screeched after him.

He _did_ turn back when his shoe flew off, and then he didn't bother tying his shoelaces.

So naturally, Risai ran after him, and of course Shishido and Choutarou followed. The rabid fan girls decided to charge after them as well, squealing something about Atobe and autographs.

When Kaidoh skidded in front of the flower shop, Risai pretty much had it all figured out. He thought his precious Tomoka was in danger, and so he ran all the way here. It was so sweet.

He slammed the doors open, causing Risai to wince as she jogged closer. Even if she was on the verge of being fired, she still liked to think the flower shop was her responsibility until the end. Those doors better not be damaged, even in the face of Kaidoh's beautiful love.

"_Osakada!"_

How romantic, she thought. Any girl would be flattered to be screamed at passionately by her love interest in the middle of a mall.

"He's so… damn… _fast_," gritted out Shishido, clutching his gangster cap so it would not fly away like Kaidoh's bandana and shoe had. "What's his problem?" Choutarou arrived as well, not out of breath at all.

Risai opened her mouth to make a snide remark as she reached the flower shop doors.

The lights went out.

.

Tomoka had actually been pretending to be asleep for the last several minutes or so. Ever since Ryoma and his cousin walked in, to be precise. She tried not to giggle as Ryoma and Kintarou competed for Sakuno, and covered her smile with a snore.

But then An had walked in, and what sounded like a _lot_ of people entering the shop. Tomoka heard mostly male voices, and a few familiar ones belonging to the Seigaku team.

They were talking about Sakuno or something, but Tomoka was more worried about whether _he_ was in the shop as well. She had no idea why there was a tennis meeting in the flower shop, but if Kaidoh was here then that changed everything.

A smooth voice near her head suggested waking her and Akutagawa Jirou. She waited nervously.

But not for long.

"_Osakada_!"

Well. Her hero had come after all. It was a perfect, wonderful way to pretend to wake up from her long and luxurious nap.

Until everything became pitch dark.

Tomoka didn't notice the lights went out at first, because her eyes were shut anyway. But when she opened them, she thought she was blind. When she realized everybody else was blind and panicked as well, she relaxed and hoped nobody tripped over her sofa.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed her arm. She was pulled up and onto her feet so fast that her head spun dizzily. Tomoka tried to jerk away, but the hand was too strong, and she felt herself being pulled swiftly and silently through the crowd of confused bodies.

Who was it? It couldn't be Kaidoh, he didn't even see her before the lights went out. Maybe the person didn't know it was her, and mistook her for somebody else.

She felt various bodies and arms bump into her, stumbling in the darkness to avoid getting injured.

"Ouch! Is that a cactus?"

"You stepped on my toe!"

"Will everyone stop moving like _idiots_—"

"Let go of me you pervert!"

"Gah! My eye! Piece of—"

It sounded like everybody was getting more injured instead.

"Sakuno?" she tried calling, but to no avail. "An-chan? Fuji-senpai?"

The grip on her arm suddenly vanished, and she was shoved from behind, propelling her forward into a solid torso. Strong arms instinctively wrapped around her shoulders, and Tomoka stopped struggling.

"…Kaidoh-senpai?"

"…Osakada?"

Underneath all the noise and confusion, Tomoka thought she heard, "Mission accomplished," before the lights abruptly turned on.

"Gah! My _eyes_!"

The flower shop was a chaotic mess. People were scattered everywhere, including in the backroom and beside the plants. There were various piles of tangled bodies and very uncomfortable human pancakes, including one that had Momoshiro on top of the stack and Dan Taichi wailing at the bottom.

"Whoa," Mizuki suddenly froze in the middle of brushing his hair. "Look at Tezuka."

Everybody looked (or tried to) at Tezuka, and realized why Mizuki was surprised.

The Seigaku captain had managed to get bowled over, and was dangerously close to falling backwards over the counter top. But that wasn't what surprised them.

"Sorry, I tripped," Fuji Yumiko apologized with a smile, completely unfazed by the fact that she was plastered on top of Tezuka, her face extremely close to his glasses. The image of his sister draped over the austere captain made Yuuta sickly pale, and even Syusuke swallowed. Tezuka stiffly helped her up, and straightened.

"Tezuka," said Inui into the silence. "Is Fuji-san the one you secretly—"

"_No_."

And that was final.

But Tomoka didn't pay attention to any of this. She didn't see Sakuno sandwiched between Yukimura and Kabaji, or An trying to push an apologetic Takashi and Mori off of her, or Ryoma glaring at the plants that had sprinkled pollen all over him.

It was cliché, but all Tomoka could see was Kaidoh Kaoru.

Risai seemed to be the first one to collect her senses, and she knew that something important was about to happen. She shoved past Shishido and Atsushi, stepped over a dazed Marui, and swiped a single sunflower stem from the vase. Making her way back to the center of the shop, she pushed the flower into Kaidoh's face. "Here. You know what to do," she told him. After all that training it would have been unacceptable if he didn't know how to react.

He nodded without hesitation.

"Osakada," he said.

By this time, most of the tennis players had righted themselves and grew quiet in time to see Kaidoh sink down on one knee and ask her a quiet question.

"Will you go to the festival with me?"

Sakuno and An gasped in unison. Momoshiro whistled; many guys cringed at such cheesiness, and a few others smiled in amusement. Inui and Risai were the only ones nodding proudly.

Tomoka smiled. "Yes." And she took the sunflower.

The flower shop burst with applause and cheers. Sakuno and An sighed in appreciation, Risai grinned with approval, and Yumiko remarked to Tezuka about young love. Kaidoh was the recipient of quite a few manly slaps on the back and "congratulations" and some heartfelt advice. It was ridiculous. He didn't even ask her to be his girlfriend, and yet it seemed like he and Tomoka were officially a couple.

Not that he minded.

More happy chaos erupted.

"Kintarou! There you are."

"Yaaah! No, Shi-chan, I don't want to go home!"

"Ojii! _There_ you are!"

"He was drinking tea in the flower shop all this time."

"Nee-san! Why are you here?"

"Oh, Yuuta, I knew I saw you! I'm the sponsor for this flower shop."

"Chitose, I think your sister is upset."

"…You think?"

Amidst all the hullabaloo, a certain sleeping beauty of Hyotei woke up. He yawned widely, wondering why he was stuffed in a chair. "What party is this?" he asked sleepily.

Atobe rounded on him. "Jirou! Ore-sama demands to know the truth!"

A bleary stare. "What?"

"What we want to know," Yuushi said calmly, "is why you said that Ryuzaki Sakuno loves Kaidoh Kaoru."

Sakuno's head turned so fast her braids nearly slapped Yukimura. "_E-Eh_?" Kaidoh hissed in surprise.

"But that wasn't a lie," Jirou yawned, stretching like a cat.

"Yes it is!"

Eiji shook his head sternly, his hair bouncing. "No, no! See, that's Sakuno-chan," he pointed at the shocked Sakuno, "and that is Kaoru-chan!" He gestured at Kaidoh, who was standing very close to Tomoka. "They don't love each other, nya!"

But Jirou's eyes fixed on Tomoka, and he said, "She's the one I saw in the forest."

At the same time, Tomoka gasped, "You're the one in the forest!"

An's eyes widened. "Wait, so the guy Tomoka was kissing in the forest was Akutagawa Jirou?"

The reaction was tremendous. Horio's mouth dropped. Momoshiro whistled again.

"What? _No_!" Tomoka waved her hands while Kaidoh's face grew dark.

Jirou blinked. "Nobody kissed me."

"An-chan, I think what you saw was different," Sakuno said quietly.

Yuushi smirked and said, "I think I see now. Atobe, you made a mistake." The Hyotei captain raised an elegant eyebrow, but did not reply. "When Jirou said he saw a pig-tailed girl from Seigaku, Atobe naturally thought it was Ryuzaki Sakuno. From that point on, the mystery girl became Ryuzaki-chan."

"I can't believe it came to this," muttered Minami. Everybody nodded in glum agreement, thinking about the battle and the confusion.

"But all's well that ends well," said Nanako quietly to Sarisa, who smiled.

Risai was taking in the state of the shop with a steely eye, making sure Yumiko was too distracted by her brothers to notice how a few pots got knocked over, or the disarray of flower petals strewn on the floor. The longer people stayed, the more damage the shop sustained. She needed everyone to get out. Now.

An ominous presence to her left made her turn, and she blinked when Inui pulled out a terrible vial full of black liquid. She wondered where it came from, but had no time to worry when he grinned.

"It seems like there was no absolute loser in this battle," he remarked in a low tone. Amazingly, everyone managed to hear him, and the shop grew silent. All eyes went to the gurgling vial of death in his hand. "Let's be fair, shall we? Everyone is a loser. Everyone gets to drink." If possible, the vial became more ominous and his grin showed sharp teeth. "Who'd like to try first?"

It was almost like the crowd of fan girls stampeding towards the piano in hopes of getting Atobe's secondhand signature. Only this time it was the opposite direction. And this group of people running away from Inui was certainly not screaming for joy.

The only people remaining in the shop were Risai, Inui and Yumiko. There was a deep silence.

Risai nodded at the data man. "Thank you."

"No problem," he responded, busily writing in his notebook. "It seems this experiment was quite a success."

"An experiment, huh?" Her eyes were distant and she thought she could see a certain girl and boy walking hand in hand down the littered mall. "Not an accident?"

"Nothing is accidental," he stated. "There may be mysteries, but those can be solved in due time." He frowned slightly, "But I wonder why Osakada Tomoka and Akutagawa Jirou were in the forest together? And why did Tezuka come with Tachibana-san and Miyuki-kun? And why did we use spitballs and plastic balls as weapons instead of tennis balls? And where was…" His questions trailed off into a murmur, and Risai and Yumiko traded looks. Inui continued mumbling in true Ibu Shinji fashion as he walked out of the flower shop.

A slight breeze made the chimes jingle faintly. Risai turned to the sponsor and took a deep breath, "Am I fired?"

Yumiko smiled pleasantly. "Even if you were, I'd hire you again."

"Huh?"

"You're better at matchmaking than me."

Risai paused, and then let a real smile spread. "Hanata Risai. Call me Risai."

"Fuji Yumiko. Pleasure to meet you."

The chimes jingled cheerfully.

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**End Part 9**

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* Yes, caught in the rain really means my other story, "Caught in the Rain." Haha. Ha.

A/N: This chapter did not take me two years to write. It took two years to step away from the story, do some thinking, and then slowly become motivated to write the finale. I think my brain got fried from all the chaos and confusion that the grapevine created. I honestly don't know why I wrote such a complicated weave of rumors for the plot. Eh. But it was fun.

As you can see, there is no final 'END' or 'THE END' yet. I'm planning on having one last chapter or epilogue to officially wrap the story up. It won't be that neat, per se, but I like neat endings, and there are still a few (or several) loose ends that need to be tied. So if you still feel like hanging around until the very end, I promise I will do my very best to finish with a satisfying 'BANG!' …Yeah.

Thank you so much for reading. If you still feel like reviewing, please do so, and tell me what I've done right and wrong, or just tell me anything. :P Thanks!


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